


Plight of the Moonstone (Temp Hiatus)

by phazonprincess



Series: Glimmer/Catra Ending AU — Losing Sleep Saga [2]
Category: She-Ra and the Princesses of Power (2018)
Genre: Action/Adventure, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, F/F, Implied Sexual Content, Mild Sexual Content, Non-Graphic Violence, Original Character(s), Post-Canon, Strong Language, Suspense, blood mention
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-06-29
Updated: 2020-07-07
Packaged: 2021-03-04 01:41:03
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24975496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/phazonprincess/pseuds/phazonprincess
Summary: Etheria has experienced peace like never before now that Horde Prime was no more with Queen Glimmer leading its people to its new beginnings, but that savory taste of victory is short-lived following an insurgence of strange occurrences that now threaten that peace. With Adora back in space to restore magic to Etheria, will the queen and the others be able to quash the remnants of unrest that lurk beneath?A more action-driven narrative to follow in the footsteps of my Losing Sleep fic, an altered canon with Glimmer and Catra as the protagonists. Rated M for violence, sexual themes, and language.Temp Hiatus on this fic until I iron out the ending! Pester me on tumblr at @glimmerposting if you want me to finish it sooner!
Relationships: Catra/Glimmer (She-Ra)
Series: Glimmer/Catra Ending AU — Losing Sleep Saga [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1807708
Comments: 16
Kudos: 32





	1. Supply Lines

**Author's Note:**

> Hello! I've decided to begin a new story arc set in the alternate universe I established in Losing Sleep! If you did not read that, I would advise reading that FIRST. This fic is built on top of that storyline!
> 
> I can NOT get enough of these two and their love, nor can I shake the need to write something in this universe I've fabricated so much care for. I'm taking a step away from the fluff and romance focus (still present, of course!) to bring some more action and excitement to the saga now that their relationship has been established. I'm even adding in some OCs to spice it up!
> 
> I do hope you enjoy, and I look forward to all of your comments! Everyone's kind words across Ao3, Tumblr, Reddit, and Discord have motivated me in a way I did not expect. Thank you so much for enjoying my stories—please look forward to more chapters as I embark on this new journey!
> 
> This chapter's warnings:  
> — Death/Mourning

“You’re _sure_ that we haven’t received anything yet? Not a _single_ letter or recording?” the queen impatiently asked the subjects in the Bright Moon’s conference chamber. 

“We are certain, Your Grace,” an advisor of hers confirmed, an elongated silence to follow. 

The queen sighed. “Okay. Thank you, Husain,” she said. Glimmer briskly waved her hand as a gesture for him to return to his seated position upon being finished speaking with him. She followed suit, elbows crashing down against the hologram-lit table, fingers pressing firmly to her temples. _For what reason would they have to not send us an affirmation of their arrival? Something isn’t adding up,_ Glimmer contemplated repeated questions following the third consecutive day of not receiving a report from a supply line she had sent to the Fright Zone.

“It has reached a point where we may need to send a scouting group to make sure nothing happened to them on the way. We all know what creatures lurk within the borders of the Fright Zone, perhaps some of its denizens caused some trouble,” her Hand, Diana announced as she stepped up from her seat to speak. Various nods made their way around the table from Bright Moon’s other court members, but Glimmer remained fixated on the outrageous possibilities she continued to fabricate in her head. After a few seconds of delay, she pulled her head up with her queenly smile to meet Diana’s gaze with her own.

“Very well, please see to it, Diana—personally, if needed. We need to know everything there is to know so that we may adjust the route if necessary. Our relationship with the Fright Zone’s citizens is more pivotal than ever and we need to ensure our shared resources reach them with haste,” Glimmer commanded, emphasizing the importance of the issue.

“It will be done, Your Grace,” her Hand confirmed, with a solitary bow to follow. “I will gather a task force to carry out the mission alongside me to ensure it is done swiftly,” she followed up, awaiting dismissal. 

Glimmer took some time to recall the meeting’s contents, making sure she wasn’t missing anything before concluding the day. Nothing came to mind, but she couldn’t help getting hung up on what could be going on. More importantly, why she hasn’t heard from Scorpia alongside this situation. _Could it be purely coincidence?_ the queen thought, but before getting to carried away with that train of thought, stood up and made her final announcements. 

“That concludes this week’s logistical affairs. We will touch base in three days’ time following Diana’s mission. As for the rest of you, continue local needs now that winter has laid its first blanket and administer allocation of finances to our neighbouring villages as they continue to rebuild. We are doing great, everyone! Let’s make this week even more productive than the last,” she finished with a spark of optimism in her voice to boost morale. “Thank you for your time—dismissed.”

—

The walk back to her quarters continued to be uneventful. Months had passed—almost half a year—since Horde Prime was vanquished. Etheria’s kingdoms were all thriving like never before and Glimmer felt confident in the role she played in its restoration. Bright Moon has always maintained its hierarchy as the overarching ruling kingdom to the neighbouring provinces, traditionally having the most resources and inhabitants. While every kingdom had its say at the table regarding global concerns, the Queen of Bright Moon has consistently been the final word in decision-making for as long as Etherians could remember. For Glimmer, ruling was still _terrifyingly_ new for her. There was never a point during the war where she felt like she had complete control of her level of authority. The energy she _might_ have spent on her rulership was instead directly put towards stopping Horde Prime. She never had the time to assess exactly what it meant to follow in Angella’s footsteps, but now with no war to win, she’s had no other choice: lead Etheria to its new life.

It was overwhelming to think about at times, still feeling like there’s just so much she didn’t have a grasp on. What if she was making decisions that were detrimental to the whole of her vision of peace? Who’s to say that _her_ vision of peace is the right one? To Glimmer, life on Etheria should be lived fully without worry about where you’ll sleep or how you’ll eat, celebrating the continued survival of such a tried and challenged planetary history. Was that enough, though? What about those jaded by their history in the war, who survived, but lost the fight? Surely not _everyone_ was satisfied with the state of the planet. _Ugh_.

The queen crashed into her bedroom as she let the door swing open widely, quick to teleport to her bed to lie down before changing into attire suitable for the night. She sighed heavily, balling her fist and slamming it down against the pillow beside her with a grunt to accompany it.

“Long day, huh?” the queen heard from beyond the veil of her bed, a voice she was all too pleased to hear after such a tiring meeting. Catra’s.

“Ugh, long doesn’t even _begin_ to describe it,” she began, divulging her thoughts in rapid succession upon the invitation. “We still haven’t heard from the Fright Zone OR the supply line and our local sources are suggesting that we are not working hard enough to help sustain their villages! Not to mention that the coming of winter has put a halt on some of our resource management—I have no idea what to even _do_ about that!” she went off, the pace of her voice quickening with each passing sentiment.

“Shhh, careful, Sparkles. You’ll lose your head if you keep that up,” the feline voice teased as she cut Glimmer off. There was a very sharp scraping sound against the floor as Catra got up from her desk to come over to the bed, not bothering to push the chair in as she sauntered over. She parted the veil and welcomed herself in with a mutual smile of joy, crawling over to where the queen lied.

Glimmer sighed as she recognized how much she was ranting, following up with a giggle as she began to turn her body to face Catra. They exchanged a brief kiss as they laid on their sides simply looking at each other as Glimmer responded. “Alright, alright, enough about me! What did you do today, love?”

Catra sat up and crossed her legs as she held her tail in her lap beginning to recount the events of her day. “Nothing exciting, I spent most of my day running some errands with Melog and giving them some much needed exercise. Honestly wore me right out,” she started, then gestured to the workspace she had been working at. “I got some more work done on a dumb project Bow and I have been working on, too.”

“You and Bow are making something together?!” Glimmer said with some excited surprise in her voice, beginning to sit up now too. Lately, the two of them had been spending more time together during their downtime. Bow was consistently coming up with new ideas and concepts for weird gear and there was a part of Catra that was so interested in being a part of it, happy to try things out or let him test things on her. Those activities have lead to their friendship blooming in a way Glimmer didn’t expect, but was grateful for, having figured that the two of them shared the least common interests in the whole best friends squad.

“Yeeeah, it’s nothing _super_ exciting, just some bolas’ that hide the string. You pull on one end to unravel the string and it like… clicks or something and lets you use it,” she began to explain, exaggerating her hand’s movements instead of just getting up and grabbing the prototype.

“Oh, so like... to store it better?” Glimmer asked, catching onto the idea.

“Yeah, pretty much! The size we came up with today feels good too.”

“That’s great!” the queen commended, happy to forget about her whole day just to hear Catra talk, somewhat getting lost in whatever she was saying to just admire her face. If nothing else, Glimmer could always look forward to her evenings now that Catra had brought all of her belongings up to her quarters. She didn’t have a ton of things to begin with, but now that they shared a bed every night, it wouldn’t make sense for her _not_ to fully move in. The more they traveled together, the more useless trinkets they found themselves collecting for sentimentality, their shelves now lined with junk all the way from Salineas to the Crimson Wastes. They even had a painting done up of them together in Mystacor, a commanding centerpiece to adorn the wall with. It finally felt like her own room, and not her mother’s.

Despite the stress that came with the crown, life was _good_ for Glimmer. She was forced to grow up so quickly into a life she wasn’t ready to take responsibility for, walking a long, winding path of hardship along the way, but now that she was at her destination, the journey felt so distant. It was thanks to the sheer amount of love she felt from her friends along the way and now she got to share every day with the person _she_ loved. Things were good, but it almost felt… too good to be true. She was constantly anxious about the possibility of something being wrong after so many days of things being right. What was she not considering? Why did she feel like something was so crucially missing despite having everything she could ever want?

She was reminded of the strange occurrence in the Fright Zone again as she wracked her brain to determine why she felt the weird anxiety that felt so invasive. What could _possibly_ be going on, anyway? Catra spoke such tall tales about the Fright Zone, but Glimmer still hadn’t been there often enough to really understand the place the same way her or Adora did. It was the first time in many weeks that something went inherently _wrong_ so far. Sure, other tasks had hit bumps but otherwise evened out. Three days, though? It just felt strange and she wondered if there was something bigger at work, which would explain why she felt like she was undermining her quality of life during times like these.

“Hey, you listening, babe?” Catra’s voice rang out, eyes locked in on Glimmer’s spaciness. She had completely zoned out as Catra went on.

“Ah—! Sorry, Kitten. I am, but…” Glimmer started, feeling a bit of a headache come to her as she fell into fixation again. “Ugh, I’m sorry Catra—there’s just… a lot on my mind,” Glimmer dejectedly admitted, laying herself back down. 

Catra leaned her body over to lay beside her queen, tracing her claw over Glimmer’s belly in gentle circles. “Do you want to talk about it? Or _do_ something about it?” Catra said in a subtly suggestive tone, eliciting a light chuckle from Glimmer.

“Mmmhmhm, as tempting and sweet as you are, I... think I should rest early tonight, darling,” she began, unwittingly shifting her hand to greet Catra’s as the feline nodded, holding it gently above her stomach as their fingers intertwined. “One of our supply lines to the Fright Zone has been out of contact for three days and it’s just... really bothering me that I don’t know why.”

“That’s… _very_ weird. Scorpia doesn’t know anything?” Catra asked, suddenly a lot more interested. 

“We haven’t heard from her either, weirdly enough. Diana is personally going to investigate because we just don’t know _anything_ right now,” the queen continued to explain, resting her eyes as she felt a wave of exhaustion swoop over her.

“Huh… alright,” Catra responded, trying to piece together the story in her head. Scorpia has taken leadership of the Fright Zone and has a seat on the Etherian council, why wouldn’t she be in touch about something like that? That’s _not_ like her. “Well, I’m sure it’ll sort itself out, Sparkles. Rest,” she said, raising her claw up to Glimmer’s cheek. The queen smiled as Catra’s fingers rubbed down her face, releasing a gentle, sleepy moan. The feline returned to her desk, not tired just yet while Glimmer slunk into a well-needed slumber.

—

The path to the Fright Zone remained treacherous as the edges of the forest blended against the sharp landscape, ridden with shattered crags and leftover horde debris. The edge of the Whispering Woods was so disjointed from any form of society that it has not yet had the proper care given to it like other areas of Etheria had. There was seemingly no need, given that this path was so seldom used in times’ past, but perhaps a revisit to the idea was necessary now that Bright Moon and the Fright Zone had rebuilt their allegiance and had caravans navigating their way to each other.

Diana had taken four agile soldiers alongside her, each on horseback to make quick work of the task at hand: find out what happened to the supply caravans holding resources from Bright Moon. As Hand of the Queen, she was often carrying out clerical tasks and relations with other kingdoms, sometimes acting queen on days that Glimmer took off from ruling. She didn’t think much for herself and was glad to have a place in the world to be useful. There was never much to be seen in her future, having forged a life of grit and deceit within the Crimson Wastes. When she was kept prisoner for trying to breach Bright Moon’s borders, ruling queen Angella decided her fate was null, but Glimmer interjected being in the right place at the right time. 

_‘ She can’t die! There’s good in her, I know it!’_ is what the princess said with such confidence, and at such a young age no less. It stuck with the hardened warrior—one who had already accepted her execution—and she vowed to repay Glimmer one day, rising in the ranks as a soldier of Bright Moon to the highest level of general she could attain before finally, she could. On the day following her coronation, she was the first to seek an audience with her to pledge her unwavering loyalty. Glimmer remembered her face, elated to have made a difference and decreed that Diana remain by her side to protect her. Ever since, Diana has pledged to see through to the good of her queen, pleased to carry out any task she’s given. That _said_ , she absolutely craved the thrill of combat from time to time, secretly hoping that she could make a display of her fighting prowess to her men.

So far, however, it didn’t appear to be that simple. It had been nearly a full day’s travel as they finally saw the looming fortress of the Fright Zone enter their view as bits and pieces of mechanical foliage surfaced beneath the rubble. The underworkings of the menacing province stretched _far_ from its core, folks often fantasizing about what might lurk beneath or how its construction ever came to be. Most of its history was lost when the majority of the Scorpioni royal family was vanquished, Scorpia being the only one left who unfortunately had never had their teachings passed down. 

“D-diana, there!” shouted one of the soldiers who took the lead in the formation. He raised a hand to point as Diana held her hand up to signal a quicker advance. What followed was a sight that could only be described as unsettling, a couple of the soldiers eliciting sharp gasps as they turned the corner on the crag that concealed the back of a Bright Moon caravan. 

Dust. 

The four missing caravans were all present before them, but had been mangled up and torn into with holes that punctured through them that spanned several feet, one of which was split right in two. There was not a soul to be heard, nor body to be found upon first inspection. As Diana hopped off her steed to investigate further, the ground beneath them began to shake as the sound of clanking gears began to resonate against the rock faces surrounding them. Each of the horses began to panic, darting in various directions as the soldiers all drew their spears. 

“Star formation!” Diana commanded, unclasping her own lance before facing her back to her squad’s, each of them covering a point of view now lying in wait as the unknown sound drew closer. In the split seconds she had to assess the situation, Diana’s eyes darted between the cart wreckage and their surroundings, piecing only one thing together. The same holes that were torn through the caravans were present against the cliff sides they traveled through. _Wurms?!_

Before she could share her revelation, a crashing sound erupted from above them as looming spires began to crumble, causing each of them to disperse in order to avoid getting crushed. Diana heard horrifying screams from her team as she jerked her head back, watching in terror as a giant, mechanical beast ruptured from the stone. Its eyes were a seething bright red as it released a guttural shriek, freezing her where she stood. She had seen _many_ faces of evil in her time, but never something so truly menacing as this. There was little left to do except the thing she did best.

_Fight_.

—

The following days were rough for the queen, not having her Hand for the first time in quite a few weeks during her hearings combined with feeling like she didn’t get enough sleep. It wasn’t completely sleepless, but she was continuously waking up from fervent dreams of unrest until the dawn finally came both today and yesterday. There was little that could be done except to push through the day and hopefully cut things early so as to not wear herself out completely. The hearings progressed as normal, nothing out of the ordinary presenting itself as she circulated through the needs of her citizens, answering to various pleas and cases for change. To that end, she was grateful. At this point, it felt like she had a good grasp on her role as queen for her own people. It was folks from other kingdoms that she didn’t _truly_ have the hang of just yet, however.

“You stand before the thirtieth Queen of Bright Moon and Guardian of Etheria, Glimmer. Please state your name,” she announced down to a woman who donned the Frost Kingdom’s emblem, doing some mental gymnastics to jog her memory of what business this individual might have for traveling this far.

“I am called Angara, from the Kingdom of Snows,” she responded, a small bow of respect adorning her sentence.

“Welcome to Bright Moon, Angara, it is our honor to receive you,” Glimmer began, taking her seat once again. “Now, what might our kingdom be able to answer?”

Angara shuffled impatiently where she stood, hardly giving Glimmer a break before responding. “It is of dire importance to share with you that… we discovered Bright Moon caravans ransacked just beyond our borders, Your Grace,” she succinctly shared, swallowing her spit upon delivering the news.

“You found _what?!_ ” Glimmer’s temper spiked for a moment, startling the room as she took a deep breath. “You’re certain? Bright Moon caravans?” she asked for clarification.

“Yes. Three of them, all empty. Crates with broken seals, and not a person to be found,” Angara continued to explain. “Frosta is wondering if Bri-” she elaborated, but was interrupted by the queen.

“Nobody?! Each of those caravans had Bright Moon soldiers to ensure their safe delivery. What _happened_ to them?” she interrogated, now at the edge of her throne.

“H-huh? I d-don’t know, Your Grace,” Angara fearfully admitted, unsure of what to say to the now enraged queen.

_“Rrrgh!”_ Glimmer yelled out, clutching her hair as she vented whatever frustrations she was feeling out in that short outburst, taking several breaths as she clutched the arm of her seat. After a few seconds of fuming from the bad news, she collected herself as much as she could to remain polite. “Angara, we will see you fully taken care of tonight, courtesy of Bright Moon. We are grateful for you coming all this way to share this news. You are dismissed,” she concluded, waving for one of her court attendants to see Angara off. The frostian bowed and took her leave.

“Further hearings are postponed until tomorrow. Queen’s orders,” Glimmer firmly announced to the court before impatiently teleporting away to her quarters. Her surrounding council began to share concerned looks as a few of them shared wordless shrugs, beginning to usher any remaining guests out, concluding the use of the hall.

The queen arrived well-within her room, groaning as soon as she appeared. Ordinarily, she would walk to her room, or teleport to the door so she could walk inside so as to not startle her girlfriend. Though to Glimmer’s surprise, Catra was not there at the moment despite it being the middle of the afternoon. She tried to recall where she might’ve been, but didn’t spend much time awake together in the morning to really discuss it. It didn’t matter. She needed to lie down and think, teleporting again above her bed, falling a full foot against the mattress as her pillows launched up from her impact.

For what _reason_ could Bright Moon resources have been struck near the Kingdom of Snows? There has never been any hostility between her and Frosta ever since they had their small scuffle as kids. She had no reason to impose a threat or start anything malicious, so why would that happen so close to her kingdom? What really rubbed her the wrong way was the missing Bright Moon soldiers and supply runners. Twelve individuals in all, suddenly not accounted for. Goods can be replaced but _lives?_ They were _done_ losing lives. There was no war to fight! 

Another thing was weighing on her. Why hadn’t Frosta just reached out via telecommunications now that Entrapta had gone ahead and set that up for each of the kingdoms? Wouldn’t that have been much quicker than sending a messenger? The gesture is very courteous, but for something so urgent, it doesn’t make sense. Glimmer teleported to her vanity, where she kept her own personal telecom screen, then warped right back to her position against the bed, tapping aggressively to bring up her contacts. She rang for Frosta, not wasting any time, but to no avail. She tried again. Nothing.

_What are you_ possibly _doing right now Frosta?!_ Glimmer angrily thought, trying a third time. Still nothing. However, that third time, it rang somewhat incessantly, not ending the transmission after the sixth chime like it ordinarily would. Seven, eight, nine… it just continued to ring. Frustrated, Glimmer closed everything down and whacked it down against the cushions beside her.

_Bang-bang-bang!_

“Aah!” Glimmer yelped, startled heavily by the intense banging, barely able to collect herself as the door began to swing open. Upon hearing the latch flick, Glimmer teleported off the bed to the middle of her room to meet her guest. To her relief, it was Catra, but the feline’s face removed any sense of security that Glimmer might have felt in that moment.

“Babe, you need to come _now_ . It’s Diana,” Catra blurted out, reaching her claw out for Glimmer’s arm. “Courtyard!” she yelled, pulling Glimmer’s hand to her other arm to grab it. The queen nodded, then grasped onto Catra. _Fwsh!_

The couple had arrived in the courtyard, Glimmer’s heart rate now soaring with concern for her Hand at the mention of her name paired with Catra's frantic delivery. She did not disclose any details, demanding haste. Her eyes darted around to see quite the commotion amidst those rallied in the courtyard. Several of her council members and various groups of Bright Moon soldiers had huddled near the entrance to the courtyard, only making Glimmer’s anxieties heighten. She let go of Catra and began to walk toward the gathering, but it quickly turned into a sprint.

“Glimmer, hold on, you don’t—! Ugh!” Catra cried out, running after her knowing damn well what was waiting for her.

“Out of my _way!_ ” Glimmer exclaimed, the crowd parting as their mournful voices softened in volume. She impatiently began to shove shoulders until she got to the front, only to be met with a sharp gasp as her hand impulsively covered her mouth, choking on a sudden rush of tears as her sights took in the scene. 

It was Diana, bloodied and bruised, kneeling with one of her men before three sealed caskets.


	2. Leadership

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Following the return of Diana, Bright Moon lies unsettled and panicked as Glimmer's council discusses what comes next, the anticipation of an impending danger looming high as they scramble to uncover what it means.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warnings for this chapter:  
> — Mourning & death mentions.  
> — Mild sexual content & implied sex.

_Horror._

It was the only thing Glimmer could feel ripping through to her core, any sounds she could perceive rampantly smothered with white noise. Bright Moon was blanketed by a thick layer of clouds, dimming the otherwise lush courtyard greenery as more soldiers and palace officials trickled into the perimeter to observe the scene. Folks muttered between themselves, some talking about the hand of the queen, others about _the_ queen, but most of the voices amidst the masses were ones of sorrow reminiscing those they lost today.

The queen couldn’t budge, harsh spikes of physical anxiety festering within her arms and legs as her eyes darted wildly. There was just so much before her that she couldn’t even _begin_ to understand. Diana was one of the fiercest fighters she’s ever known, standing at six foot six, a renowned fighter who could best just about anyone with those ebony pipes of hers. Yet, here she knelt, tainted by slashes, sweat, and blood. The other survivor was in an even worse state. What _happened?_ How could something so deadly happen from a simple scouting mission?!

Her mind began to spiral as she clenched her chest, ready to collapse from the grief that swept over her, until she felt Catra’s embrace against her shoulders.

“Glimmer, this isn’t your fault!” Catra spoke strictly, jostling the queen somewhat to snap her back to reality. It was exactly what Glimmer needed to keep her head on her shoulders, sharply inhaling and releasing an exasperated breath to alleviate the onset of panic. She peered to her side to meet the eyes of the concerned feline, soon to avert her gaze back to her Hand.

“Diana,” the queen began, the masses’ voices dwindling into silence as the hand of the queen rose from her knee. She winced before turning around to look down at Glimmer, her face stained with dry tears. “I need to know _everything,”_ Glimmer commanded, baring her teeth as she teetered on tears of her own.

The hand averted her eyes and sighed, gathering her thoughts before turning her face back to the queen. “We will not discuss it publicly out of respect for the men I’ve lost—not until they have been buried, Your Grace,” she dutifully declared with a mournful confidence in her voice.

Glimmer winced at the reality upon hearing the word ‘burial’, jerking her head to the side as the fact of the matter rose high to the surface. These people were dead. _Her_ people. Under _her_ command. There was little else she could do but begin to cry, forgetting about the crowd in that moment as Catra simply held her.

—

It was a quiet afternoon. Little was spoken amongst commoners and nobles alike as the minutes ticked by in silence, the air tense with worry and panic that now dwelled at the heart of Bright Moon. There was an emergency courtroom meeting held by the queen immediately following Diana’s return, demanding to get to the bottom of the horrifying event that transpired. For the first time, Catra was _also_ invited to sit in on the meeting. Ordinarily, Glimmer tries to keep her more clerical discussions separate from her relationship and even friendships, but she knew that she couldn’t keep herself together without Catra’s presence. Some were shocked to see her there—and sitting in the King’s seat no less—but eventually paid it little mind as Glimmer’s voice soared with rage across the hologram of Etheria that lay before them.

Discussion was hot at first, loaded with questions that irrationally circled around themselves with everyone present getting cut off in fits of hysteria, Glimmer not excluded. Before the council could quiet down, Diana finally and uncharacteristically raised her voice—even to the queen—to allow her room to explain, exclaiming that this was all pointless banter that didn’t help the matters at hand.

She began to concisely recount the events of her travels the previous day, not skimping out on any of the details as she accurately described the scenes set before her. Everything from the path’s disarray to the displacement of Bright Moon’s caravans, right up to the terror that unfolded. It was not a pretty sight, describing just how mortifyingly quick this mechanical beast wove its way amidst the rocks for its sheer size. The sounds it made, the force it was capable of, the way its mechanisms allowed it to contort itself—everything she could _possibly_ recall found its way to the table, striking fear into all those who listened, even Catra.

Everyone was at a loss for words following Diana’s tale. Where could Glimmer even _begin_ to dissect what happened to her and her men? The creature she spoke of was absolutely not natural, which Catra confirmed when asked. But who was left to possibly harness such a powerful monster with such masterful craftsmanship? Hordak resided with Entrapta in Dryl, the only two that could fathomably create such a beast. Even if they did, for what reason would they have to strike against the newfound peace? Glimmer gave her initial orders to Diana because they didn’t know enough, but now they know even _less_ with all these new unanswered questions.

“We _must_ get in touch with Princess Scorpia, Your Grace,” Diana proposed, concluding that she might have some insight on _something_ that would help them understand. 

That made Glimmer remember the series of coincidences pertaining to the telecom system. Scorpia hadn’t been picking up ever since that supply line was shipped out to the Fright Zone. Then, when word came from the Kingdom of Snows, Frosta couldn’t be reached either. Come to think about it, it’s been days since she’d heard from _any_ of the other rulers. Mermista, Perfuma, Entrapta… all radio silence.

“She hasn’t been answering. Actually… no one has been. I tried to connect with Frosta, but couldn’t,” Glimmer explained, her face puzzled as she pressed her cheek against her fist.

“Hm… I tried to connect with Adora yesterday, too, but it just kept ringing,” Catra added, recalling the strangeness of it. Adora _never_ ignored a call from Bright Moon. Even when she was asleep, she would wake up to answer with excitement.

“Really? Adora never misses a call!” Glimmer exclaimed, mirroring Catra’s thoughts verbally. 

“That can’t be coincidence,” Catra stated, her claws making their debut against the hologram as she finally injected herself into the conversation. One of the court members began to raise their voice in objection, but was shushed by the one next to them to allow the feline room to speak. “What if there’s something going on with the network? The Fright Zone has no shortage of disruption tools that I’m certain didn’t just _randomly disappear_ ,” she gestured as she thought back to her time in the horde. It wasn’t uncommon to set up jamming signals near various outposts, speaking from experience.

“That implies that the issue stems from the Fright Zone, whom we have had a healthy allegiance with since the dawning of New Etheria,” a woman of the court gently suggested. 

“Hmph. _No_ one from the Fright Zone should be trusted. Leave it to the ex-horde leader to be the one to suggest it,” another member snidely mentioned, glaring at Catra, to which she felt a rush of insecurity.

With barely any time between his comment, Glimmer’s fists crashed against the conference table, forcing the hologram to spasm for a split second. “Those who admonish our guest _will_ see themselves removed from the courtroom,” she threatened, affixing her gaze to the man who spoke. _“Permanently.”_

Catra was beside herself, not sure if she was afraid, aroused, or both at what her queen just said to defend her. Though now was hardly the time to be infatuated by her protective nature, attempting to further the conversation that she imposed. “Look, _all_ I’m saying is that the assets exist and could potentially be used with bad intentions if in the wrong hands. I don’t know _who_ would use them that way, but if there is someone or some… thing behind all of this, we need to unroot it fast,” she concluded. She garnered a surprising amount of agreement from the table, including confident nods from Diana.

“Catra is right. We cannot sit idly and mourn while we wait for them to strike again. Dahlia, see that Bright Moon is fortified adequately and that training exercises become more routine,” she gestured across the table to her military captain before turning to each of her court members and barking out individual orders to see through to each facet of this new dilemma. Finally, she got to Diana, hesitant to share her orders so as to not overwhelm her, knowing she was grieving.

“I live to serve, Your Grace,” Diana explained with a nod, Glimmer’s face as usual adorned with her emotions bright as day for everyone to see. The queen chuckled, comforted by Diana’s loyalty.

“And for that, I am ever grateful. You will be accompanying me personally to travel to the Fright Zone,” she announced with confidence.

“Wh-what?!” Catra exclaimed, a series of gasps unfolding around the table, Diana included.

“Y-your Grace, with all due respect, you should remain in Bright Moon,” Diana insisted, standing up from her seat to impose herself, to which Glimmer stood as well.

“Your men died under _my_ orders, Diana. I will not see that I make that mistake again,” Glimmer responded with an air of solace and reflection. 

Diana grunted, sighing heavily under her breath. “There is no stopping you—you are the queen, after all,” she admitted. 

“Wai-wai-wai-wait! Glimmer, you _can’t_ be serious! That is _way_ too dangerous, what if something happens to you?!” Catra restlessly explained, rising up from her chair desperate to _want_ to put her hands on Glimmer, but refrained for the sake of her image as queen.

Glimmer grinned as she turned her head to her lover. “I’ll be fiiine! If push comes to shove, I can teleport us back after we learn something,” she affirmed.

“No, _stupid!”_ Catra yelled in response, disgruntled sounds coming from the court upon hearing her say such a thing to the queen. “You _need_ to stay here. Bright Moon is strongest when you’re here,” she begged, desperate for Glimmer to reconsider the danger it wouldn’t just impose on her, but also on her kingdom.

The queen stammered to find a response, not considering the repercussions of her absence. She would be leaving Bright Moon in a much weaker state with her not present to channel the Moonstone’s energy directly in the case of an emergency. She recalled the Horde’s invasion of Bright Moon and how her mother fought tooth and nail to fend them off using the runestone’s power alone. With whatever was going on, it would be unwise to make a departure not knowing what danger was lurking. Catra was right.

“Okay,” Glimmer dejectedly shared. “I will stay.”

There were a series of strange looks being tossed around, mostly of shock at how quickly Glimmer’s mind was changed on something. Usually, the queen is a lot more stubborn, but it seemed that Catra was able to sway her even in moments of rashness. Diana was able to catch on to this, usually never present when Catra and Glimmer are in the same room. She of course knew of their relationship, but always had her doubts about Catra. All of which were just proven wrong by her conviction to keep Glimmer safe but also by her prowess in military knowledge. Having someone previously so deep-rooted in the horde as one of their closest allies was a boon not to be overlooked, she thought.

“But that doesn’t mean I’m not doing anything. Husain, you will assist me in reaching out to the other princess’ to arrange a mandatory alliance meeting,” Glimmer announced as an alternative to her previous idea.

“What about princess Scorpia?” Husain responded, quick to think that a messenger heading through the Fright Zone would be unwise.

Glimmer gave a hearty laugh. “Oh, Husain. You underestimate what I’m capable of now,” she said as she picked up a document that lied beneath the hologram. She snapped her fingers, forcing it to vanish into a brief pink cloud. 

The court advisor scrambled with discomfort as he reached through his robe to discover the letter so carefully tucked underneath his arm, revealing the letter and eliciting gasps from the table.

“I just need you to write the damn things for me, my writing is _awful!”_ Glimmer followed up, glancing over at her lover who was slack-jawed with amusement. Diana could be heard chuckling as well, warming Glimmer’s heart that even now, her hand continued to be a ray of warmth in her presence. 

Shortly following her last remarks, Glimmer dismissed the court with haste to see through to their tasks, wishing for every minute to be spent wisely over the next few days. “Not you,” she gestured as Diana began to make her leave. She wished to formally express her condolences, not yet having had the time to share a proper apology for what unfolded under her command.

The hand of the queen remained, her chair pushed in as she stood against the holo-table. She anticipated exactly what words would come out of the queen’s mouth, wanting to stop her in an attempt to keep things professional, but refrained knowing that it would be beneficial for the Glimmer she knew to speak her mind. 

Catra stood up, reading the room and instinctively knowing that her place would be best elsewhere at the moment. She rubbed her hands gently against Glimmer’s back as the queen continued to wait for the rest of the council to depart. “Hey, great job today,” Catra complimented, pushing her chair in albeit somewhat crudely. “You know where to find me,” she added, leaning down to give the queen a peck on the head. Glimmer looked up and smiled with acknowledgement, but said nothing as her partner made her leave, shutting the door behind her.

“Diana, I know you can read me like an open book, but” Glimmer began to joke. “It’s… really nice to have someone like you to talk to. I look up to you so much,” the queen admitted with confidence as her eyes were beaming toward the warrior hand. 

That was _not_ what Diana was expecting to hear, prepared for an apology, quite moved by the queen’s words. She couldn’t help but unhinge a hearty smile as she peered down the table toward her ruler. “The feeling is mutual, Queen Glimmer,” she softly responded, perhaps the most gentle Glimmer’s ever heard her speak.

“I can’t undo what happened to your soldiers, I can’t… expect you to forgive me for putting you in such danger, but I _can_ thank you for everything you’ve done. I couldn’t do any of this ruling crap without you,” Glimmer said with utmost sincerity until she trailed off into her usual ever-charming demeanor.

The hand simply laughed, beginning to pace around the table to meet Glimmer closer up. “With or without me, you’d make a wonderful ruler. Every good leader makes mistakes, and I’ve never seen someone admit to and rectify their own so confidently like you have,” she shared, now steps away from the queen, who was now blushing and looking down at the table. 

“Sometimes I wonder what mom would think of me if she saw me now,” she sighed, glancing over to Diana with a giggle. “Or you, for that matter!”

“Oh, I’m sure she’d think we are quite the unlikely duo,” Diana said in her stoic demeanor. “She would be so proud of you, Your Grace.”

Glimmer sighed, swimming in warm memories of her mother for a few moments before beginning to lift herself up from the chair. “We’ve got lots of work to do, my friend,” she said, standing toe to toe with her hand as she pushed herself forward to embrace Diana.

It was unexpected, having never received physical contact from the queen, not knowing how to react at first, but after a few moments allowed her arms to gently rest against her back as Glimmer hugged her.

She pulled away, shifting her sights up to the looming warrior, not wanting to subject her to too much uninvited affection. “Thank you, Diana,” Glimmer said softly.

“Thank _you_ , Glimmer.”

—

The day dragged on far longer than Glimmer could have ever wished for. It was hard to believe that Diana’s return, her arduous court meeting _and_ all of those letters she sent off happened all in the span of just _one_ day. Night had fallen well over hours ago and only now was Glimmer approaching her bedroom.

Upon her entry, she was greeted with a sight she was all too familiar with: Catra slumped over her desk with a candle barely lit, and yet it continued to be just as adorable and sweet as ever to walk in on. The queen teleported over beside her lover, letting the palm of her hand rest against Catra’s shoulder, not wanting to startle her.

 _“Hey, sweetie,”_ Glimmer whispered, feeling Catra shift in her seat before she flung herself up from the table. 

“G-glimmer!” Catra exclaimed, gathering herself as she rubbed one of her eyes, her other hand unwittingly wandering towards Glimmer’s hip to crawl up the queen’s leotard annoyingly.

“You’re _cute_ when you— _hey!”_ the queen started, quick to hold Catra’s hand from above the cloth to prevent it from crawling any further. “At least let me get comfy first, Kitten,” she said, the hand on her shoulder tracing up Catra’s neck to her cheeks with the most delicate swirls of her fingertips. _Fwsh!_

The feline couldn’t help but giggle as she felt a yawn burgeoning, glaring towards her queen as she changed out of her regalia and into her pajamas. It never got tiring to watch her undress. Once she was beginning to feel more awake again, she remembered in rapid succession the events of the day, now feeling the need to check in. “Hey… how was the rest of your day, babe?”

Glimmer now fully undressed slunk into a delicate pair of underwear, taking this as an opportunity to tease Catra knowing that she was staring at her naked body. “It was fine,” Glimmer began, pulling high on the sides of her panties to make them snap to her hips before continuing. “Better now that I’m here.”

That flustered the _hell_ out of Catra, aroused at the implication as she finally got up from her stool to unwittingly prance over to her curvy lover.

“For real, though, it was actually fine. I was able to get a lot done, despite feeling… sad,” Glimmer managed to share, trying not to sink into those feelings now that she was thinking of them.

“Hey,” Catra softly switched to a more comforting approach. “You’re doing your best. Don’t forget that,” she said as Glimmer could feel her hands begin to run up her shoulders, still not wearing anything on the top of her body just yet. Catra’s hands continued to wander down Glimmer’s chest as the queen arched her neck back into Catra’s kisses. 

“I’d like to be… doing something else right about now,” Glimmer cooed, her hands reaching back to grasp Catra’s hips. _Fwsh!_

—

The Kingdom of Snows flourished this time of year, embracing the deep temperatures of Etheria as snow fell across the nation. Naturally, Frosta’s power was heightened during the apex of the season. It of course felt like there was no need for it now that the war was over, but there have been many instances of her being able to use it recreationally for the benefit of her people. She was beginning to get a good handle on her _own_ ruling responsibilities, having grown up a bit throughout the war. There was no helping the fact that she remained the youngest of all Etheria’s leaders, but that had no effect on how much was expected of her.

Things were mostly uneventful, not having a thriving kingdom like Bright Moon or Salineas, but she of course had no shortage of things to keep her busy, as boring as it was. It felt like it was always the same things. Participate in meetings and listen to people older than her think they knew better, her judgment on anything being doubted as usual. It got to be rather annoying—at least during the war, she could do what she wanted. There was a part of her that missed it, despite obviously being thrilled with the peace.

Finally, something broke the chain of boring necessities. It was a letter, fabricated right before her as she sat in a throne room empty, save for two pairs of guards. The shimmering lavender cloud vanished quickly as the parchment fell down to the platform beneath her throne. Frosta shot up to excitedly see what her friend had sent her. Anyone would recognize that hue. It was good timing, as Frosta had been trying to contact Bright Moon’s queen for days now but couldn’t establish a connection, something she simply attributed it to the cold. She unraveled the letter, breaking the wax seal without even waiting to get back to her seat.

_Frosta,_

_The Kingdom of Bright Moon requests your immediate presence for an emergency Queen’s Alliance meeting in the following days._

_I will keep things clear and to the point. We have suffered three casualties to an unknown source and must meet to discuss our plan of protection to keep our kingdoms safe._

_I am sorry I cannot share further at this time. No response required, simply your presence._

_See you soon—miss you!_

_Queen Glimmer_

“Casualties?!” Frosta exclaimed out loud, somewhat taken aback by the contents of the letter. She was instantly drawn back to the news that was shared with her about the Bright Moon caravans that were found deserted on the outskirts of her secluded kingdom. Naturally, her kingdom received few visitors from it being so high up behind cascading walls of ice, but the paths aren't hard to navigate. It was just tedious. She grew increasingly concerned as she put the pieces together. Was it not the cold after all? What was going on?

“Your Majesty, what is it?” one of her attendants spoke up, turning and lifting her mask to speak to Frosta as she stood at the base of the finely cut ice staircase.

“It’s Bright Moon! We have to go there as soon as possible,” she commanded, rolling the letter up and tucking it under her coat. “Double our escort numbers and prepare for immediate departure, I will be—”

“Queen Frosta, are you sure it’s wise to lea-” the frostian interrupted, quick to get cut off herself.

 _“I_ will decide what is wise and you _will_ do better to remember that,” she threatened, raising her hand to transform the ice beneath her to carry her down the stairs on a circular platform that slid down gracefully. “We leave in a matter of hours, please… see that our kingdom is fortified before departure.”

This statement shook all four guards present, the same one continuing to share their thoughts. “Wh-what?! For what reason? We have not been attacked since the war!”

“You’re right. Let’s keep it that way,” Frosta exclaimed, finally raising her gaze up to the soldier that spoke to her. “Something weird is happening and it is necessary for me to see my way to Bright Moon.”

Her two primary guards looked to each other and nodded, the quieter one making his leave to begin preparations, while the other one responded once more. “Frosta, forgive us,” she knelt in apology.

Frosta said nothing, frankly quite tired of the constant apologies that followed in the wake of doubt in her ruling capabilities. It felt autonomous every time it happened, making her feel bitter each time it occurred. The frost queen took her leave, striding down the effervescent staircase that led to her sanctum, muttering under her breath.

_“I will not be complacent. Not this time.”_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tension rises! First debut of my take on the Kingdom of Snows! Some cute, sensual Glitra fluff! Hope you enjoyed and are ready for more. :)


	3. The Queens of Etheria

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The queens have gathered in Bright Moon to discuss the new threat to Etheria, hoping to find a plan. That is, all queens except for one.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's warnings  
> — Torture/Abuse Mention
> 
> Lots of characters in this chapter—enjoy!

It was a chilling morning on the outskirts of Bright Moon as the queen stood outside the gates accompanied by Bow. Snow gently fell against their coats as they waited patiently for the last of the other queens to arrive, the air quiet save for the odd banter between the two friends. Glimmer hadn’t had much time to spend with Bow in the past few days, taking this opportunity to catch him up to speed before the big alliance meeting, of which he was invited to. There was a fine line that the queen walked in terms of disclosure of private affairs versus wanting her friend to be there to comfort her during this time of anxiety and stress. It was hard.

“Do you think everyone will come?” the archer asked after a few minutes of nothing, squinting as if he saw something within the forest’s entrance across the whitened prairie.

“I’m… not sure. I want to hope so, but,” Glimmer started, shaking her head knowing she wasn’t confident all would show. “It’s hard to convince myself that nothing is wrong, Bow,” she concluded, lifting her cold hands up and into her coat pockets. 

“Well, Frosta was first to arrive and you _did_ say that  she was one you weren’t so sure about,” Bow said, a symbol of optimism as usual. He rubbed his hands together rapidly as he turned to his queen for her response.

“That’s… true. We’re only waiting on Perfuma and Scorpia, now,” she mentioned, gaze unbroken as she admired the forest.

“Hmm. Given what you shared about the Fright Zone, I hope to see Scorpia well,” Bow worriedly said, shuffling his feet in place. The boy was completely under-dressed, not realizing how cold it had gotten outside until he was there for a little under an hour with open toed shoes and a jacket that barely reached his waist. Glimmer finally decided to comment on it after noticing his foolishness when they first stepped out of the city.

“We won’t be out here much longer, then you can warm up,” she giggled, finally turning her head to her friend.

“I-I’m not cold! Just… not warm,” Bow said in jest, somewhat bashful in response to Glimmer’s smirk. When he turned away, his eyes were greeted by the familiar sight of their friend and her escorts as Perfuma marched out from the entrance of the forest. Similar to the other queens who had arrived thus far, she too had doubled up on able-bodied fighters to aid her on her travels. Which was saying something, given that Plumeria had perhaps the weakest line up of defense throughout Etheria. Glimmer didn’t beat around the bush in regard to the events that unfolded, however brief it may have been in her letters. It’s clear that her words struck the hearts of her friends as she had anticipated.  


As the forest ruler eagerly leapt ahead of her caravan, Glimmer unhinged her queenliness to teleport ahead to greet her friend in open arms as they shared an excited, giggly embrace, Bow quick to run forward to follow.

“Queen Glimmer! It is great to see you well! And you, Bow!” Perfuma exclaimed as Glimmer pulled back with the widest smile she’d donned all day. 

“It’s great to see you, too, Perfuma. Welcome to Bright Moon!” Bow announced with the usual dramatic hand gestures as he presented Bright Moon, as if Perfuma had  _ never _ seen it before. The flowery ruler giggled as she tightened her grip on the poncho she wore. Plumeria was perhaps the most untouched by the winter year-round, quite temperate during the colder seasons, so she was plenty out of her comfort zone.

Glimmer was happy to extend her hand to guide Perfuma in through the gate, their hands meeting as they took their steps toward the kingdom. “Hopefully your travels were uneventful?” the queen queried, looking behind them to observe her soldiers aid Perfuma’s in getting their caravan through the gate.

“Yes, thankfully. Your letter! It… my condolences, Glimmer,” Perfuma said solemnly in response, recalling its contents. 

Glimmer looked up toward her friend as the trio walked through toward the palace, instilling as much confidence as she could into her voice. “We will get to the bottom of it, I know it,” she responded, her grip on Perfuma tightening slightly before she finally let go of her hand. 

One of the guards stationed at the gate rushed up toward the queen as they began taking their steps through the market street. “Y-your Grace!”

She let out a sigh as her footsteps were halted, turning around and shifting into a forced smile. “You have her attention.”

“The gate. Shall we keep it open?” he asked, glancing over to the empty prairie now that Perfuma’s citizens had all fully filed into Bright Moon.

There were a few moments of contemplation, knowing that Scorpia still hadn’t shown her face. Perfuma was already somewhat late, presumably due to the snow slowing her path, but Scorpia was _not_ a stranger to the cold. “No. Close it,” Glimmer commanded with confidence.

“Glimmer? What about Scorpia?” Bow questioned, perhaps somewhat stupidly knowing that it didn’t matter what he said to the stubborn queen.

“She isn’t coming. We need to begin.”

—

It was tense as the queen of Bright Moon organized her documents at the helm of the table, everyone now seated. The conference room was mostly empty of any of her usual court officials, asked to stand by. Four guards were the only other bodies in the room, two at the door and two merely steps behind the queen’s seat, there purely for extra protective measures as requested by Diana. No words were spoken amidst their friends, despite this being an opportunity to enjoy each other’s company as a group for the first time in weeks, or months for that matter. 

Frosta, Perfuma, Entrapta and Mermista had all arrived safely from their respective kingdoms. Huntara had come all the way from the Crimson Wastes to get on the same page as well. Glimmer’s father Micah also present, one of the first to arrive second only to Frosta, wanting to comfort his daughter as soon as possible upon hearing the news. He had been away at Mystacor sparking new teachings in sorcery to a new generation of students, not having any interest in returning to a rulership position that his daughter had such a firm grip on at this point. For Glimmer, there was a moment of vulnerability as she first embraced her father earlier in the courtyard, letting loose the storm as she fumbled to explain her stress to him. It was good that he could come. The remaining seats were filled by Diana, Bow and Catra with only a single chair empty, one that was otherwise reserved for Scorpia.

Finally, Glimmer stood to welcome her audience of friends, taking a deep breath before beginning. However, before she could say anything, Entrapta piped up with wonder.

“Wait, what about the net and wind girls?” she blurted out, looking around the room to try and spot them standing somewhere.

“They are at home,” Catra answered. “They are… expecting, so we don’t want to trouble them, or whatever,” she explained, also somewhat wishing that they could attend, the powerful allies that they were.

“Expecting what?” Entrapta followed up with, her fingers tapping against the table. Mermista scoffed at the noise and frank obliviousness from the technician.

“Umm, obviously a baby? Probably,” the sea queen shrugged, eliciting a gasp of surprise from Perfuma.

“Ooh! That’s so beautiful!” she chimed, clapping her hands until she heard Glimmer loudly grunt to shut everyone up.

Once everyone cooled down again, Glimmer placed her palms against the holo-table to activate it. It had been prerendered to show the location of the events that unfolded with Diana’s squad. Four busted caravans in blue adorned the pink grid following its appearance, soon to be accompanied by harsh red circles that lit up in the surrounding area. She wanted to get straight to the point, getting all of the unsavory news out first. The queens at the table took in what was being shown, beginning to understand the display as the seconds ticked, each grimacing with realization as they observed it carefully.

“Three of my soldiers were killed on a scout mission to the Fright Zone. That is why I have welcomed everyone to this court, observing several oddities that I can no longer conclude to be coincidence,” Glimmer began, succinctly summarizing the topics of the day as she broke down the general details of each case step by step. The Fright Zone caravans, transmissions not working, the Frost Kingdom disappearances—all of it. Each passing story she shared added to the dread that slowly poured into the room. “We at Bright Moon do not know what is happening, or why we are being targeted by this unknown force. I invite any leads or new knowledge anyone present might share,” she concluded returning to a seated position.

It felt as though many were hesitant to comment, lost in their own thoughts about how they’d best protect their kingdoms or curiously wondering what all of this meant for them. Finally, Mermista stood to share her own sentiment.

“Now that I think about it, we were totally supposed to receive some supplies from your kingdom to help some of Salineas’ neighbouring villagers, buuut we didn’t get them,” she passively said, crossing her arms as she spoke. 

Glimmer frowned, somehow not surprised by the news she shared. She decided to focus on the caravans, welcoming Diana into the discussion. “That’s  _ three _ separate instances of our caravans being ransacked, assuming that’s what happened to the ones en route to Salineas. Diana, what can we deduce from that?” the queen asked, furrowing her brows as her fingers met against her forehead.

The warrior thought for a second before sharing what she knew of the shipments. “The supply lines we sent consisted mostly of food, but I recall the caravan to Salineas being more on the materials and resources side, Your Grace,” she shared.

“Weren’t we supposed to receive tools?” Frosta added, raising her hand for attention.

“That sounds familiar,” Glimmer responded with a nod, turning back to Diana. “What about the Fright Zone?” she questioned, attempting to figure out the lowest common denominator that might attract someone to the shipments.

“It was mostly food, but we had an excess of coal and other minerals that we sent as well,” the hand said, wracking her mind to remember the details of these things she would ordinarily pay little mind to.

It was Catra’s turn to pipe up. “Those are  all things that could be used  _ make _ stuff, right?” she deduced, scratching her chin as she visualized the beast that Diana described. “Wasn’t the…  _ thing _ you fought, like, made out of metal?” she asked.

Glimmer gasped at Catra’s revelation, thinking that she was onto something. “That is unnervingly beginning to make sense,” she said, turning to the empty chair thinking of Scorpia. Intrusive thoughts hailed down against her, blowing worries out of proportion as she began to dwell on the possibility of betrayal. It seemed she wasn’t alone in those anxieties, Huntara interjecting to make the accusation that the table was all thinking.

“The only person who isn’t here coincidentally rules the borders of mechanical habitats,” she grunted, only to be met with defensive comments from the plumerian queen.

“N-no! She would never hurt anyone!” she cried, followed shortly by a comment from Catra to back her up.  


“Not to mention that if _anyone_ could plan something so elaborate, she’s the  _ last _ person who could possibly do it,” she chuckled as she visualized her claws trying to do  anything dextrous, let alone create something so intricate and deadly.

Silence fell once again, the table rife with contemplation about possibilities surrounding Scorpia, but finally Bow began to contribute his thoughts.

“Entrapta… what about Hordak? Not to accuse you of this or anything, but, it  _ was _ you who designed the telecom system. It seems too convenient,” he explained, having drawn his own hypothesis surrounding Hordak and Entrapta. They were so close-knit and were both the most technically savvy of anyone else they knew. Naturally, he would be led to the conclusion that she had some involvement especially with the telecoms being offline.

“Huh? Nah, Hordak just lets me build things on him in Dryl! We just gave him a hand that he can use to change his fingers into utensils—four at once!” the mechanic exclaimed wildly, flaring her fingers wide to the table but quickly realizing her comment was out of place as she received glares of annoyance. “U-uh, I just mean that he and I haven’t been doing anything weird! We actually tried to reach out to Bright Moon but thought it was just a bad day for the network,” she explained.

Glimmer butted her head into the conversation. “Hordak  _ is _ here, too. He came with Entrapta and is in the courtyard with the others not at the table with us,” she admitted to defend Entrapta, despite feeling that there’s a part of Bow that she thought might be right. The horde never just  _ went away _ or anything, at least not the Etherian Horde. Who was to say that Hordak couldn’t assume control of horde loyalists all over again? That line of thinking got Glimmer truly jogging her thoughts. 

“Well, if it’s not Scorpia or Hordak—or  _ me _ for that matter—then who could possibly be plotting something like that?” Catra piped up, seeming to hit a dead end.

“It… could be someone we don’t know personally,” Glimmer suggested to the table, continuing her train of thought. It elicited grunts of confusion from her friends as she made eye contact with her father. “Dad, were you alone on Beast Island? Save for Entrapta, obviously,” she asked him directly.

“Umm, yes? I didn’t see anyone that wasn’t just a wild beast,” Micah answered. “Heh, hence the name,” he chuckled upon realizing what words stumbled out of his mouth. “Why?”

“I was just… trying to think of anyone who  _ might _ have reason to hate Etheria, someone who hated it  _ before _ Horde Prime’s war,” Glimmer continued to share aloud before sharing her revelation. “I mean, it’s not like the horde from before just  _ vanished _ or anything… right?” she asked as if for validation, or better, denial.

_ “Ugh,” _ Catra exclaimed, whispering a curse under breath. “The army of the horde was massive, surely not all of them ‘suddenly loved Etheria’ once Horde Prime was defeated,” she begrudgingly teased with air quotes from her claws as she began to agree with her partner. The table’s concern shifted away from individuals and more towards the big picture. The Fright Zone was huge, thousands upon _thousands_ of residents living there who previously fought for, lived, and breathed the horde and its practices.

“The points are beginning to connect, Your Grace,” Diana confided directly toward her queen, sharing a realization. “Given how far the Fright Zone stretches beneath the surface, we shouldn’t rule out their reach. It would explain the other caravans,” she elaborated.

“Isn’t that all, you know, a rumor or whatever? There’s no Fright Zone near Salineas… it’s all water after all,” Mermista argued, suggesting that it didn’t explain the missing caravan sent to her kingdom. 

“Well, if it didn’t even reach the port to be sailed to you, who’s to say?” Glimmer raised her counterpoint. 

“Still… it seems far-fetched that the Fright Zone is that big and  _ nobody _ knows about it,” Mermista continued, only to be interrupted by Catra.

“It isn’t a rumor,” she shared abruptly with conviction. “The Fright Zone… no one I know ever saw the bottom of it. The core, the end of the tunnels, nothing! Adora and I would adventure for hours and still not find the end of anything. It’s massive and very real,” she explained trying to illustrate its sheer vastness the best she could.

Entrapta raised her hand, trying her best not to interrupt but couldn’t hold it in, speaking with her hand raised anyway. “Oh! If there’s some sort of jamming signal, who’s to say it wouldn’t be right under our noses then?” she suggested, of course fixated on her broken network this whole time.

“Could be,” Glimmer started. “Do you think you could bypass it if there was one, Entrapta?” she asked curious to know if the problem were that easy to solve.

“A jamming signal? Absolutely! We just configure our devices to a new server—actually, no, a _channel_ , and BAM! Calls!” she exclaimed, whipping out her pad and dialing in numbers in quick succession. “Try calling me on channel six—oh! And turn on point-to-point in the settings. That way it connects to the device only instead of going through the server. Trust me!” 

Glimmer snapped her fingers and fabricated her telecom device within her hands, sparking some gasps of amusement at the queen’s new talent and control over her warping. She followed through on Entrapta’s directions. “Okay… it’s ringing.”

Just like that, they were connected.

“Hiya, Glimmer!” the table could hear both from Entrapta  _ and _ Glimmer’s telecom. There was a huge sigh of relief as Glimmer hung up the call, advising everyone to follow suit. Entrapta continued to talk into her device even though the connection was cut. “It only works if  _ both _ devices are on the same channel. Also, anyone  _ on _ that channel will hear everyone else on it! It’s like a party but on your screen with no video!” she excitedly explained.

“Okay, so… we can use this to check in with everyone, but it won’t be private?” Perfuma asked patiently trying to follow along.

“Yup! Nope!” the technician responded, not bringing much clarity to Perfuma.

“That’s precisely what it means, Perfuma,” Bow affirmed with a smile toward her puzzled face.

Glimmer teleported her device away again as the others continued to finagle with their settings. She refrained from speaking further until everyone’s attention returned, but she was feeling  _ good _ about where they were getting with everything. It seemed like this morning they knew nothing, but are now are converging on whatever secrets are left looming above them. It was at this point that she was trying to decide what actions to take to further investigate the Fright Zone especially regarding the whereabouts of Scorpia. She actually already had a plan set in motion, it was just a matter of waiting to share it once everyone was on the same page.  


Once folks were seated and waiting again, Catra broke the silence. “Clearly we need to go to the Fright Zone and figure out as much as we can—stealthily, ideally,” she added, thinking bigger in regard to protecting Bright Moon soldiers from the same fate as before.

“I agree. I can’t sit by and wait—I need to be there,” Glimmer explained to Catra knowing that she was just going to deny her again.

“No—no! You _know_ you can’t do that!” she expectedly yelled in response, but Glimmer was already one step ahead of her.

“It’s okay. I won’t be  _ leaving- _ leaving,” she began to chuckle as she raised her hand up and waved forward one of the guards stationed by her chair. They took two steps forward, the clanking of their metal boots echoing through the conference hall as Glimmer’s hand was met with that of the guard’s. With a series of concerned looks to coincide with Catra’s bewilderment, Glimmer continued. “I don’t  _ always _ act without a plan,” she spoke confidently, turning her head to face the guard.

Suddenly, the hand she held sunk into a dark indigo hue as it blurred, the effect traversing up the forearm of the guard as it rampantly began to take over their body, the shape shifting and growing from their otherwise short presentation to a long, slender figure with pointed ears. Jaws opened across the table as sounds of surprise made their way out as the individual’s lush green skin began to shimmer in the light of the hall.

“Gosh, standing like that for so long is  _ not _ very entertaining,” the shapeshifter so snidely commented as they stretched their arms up over their head. It was Double Trouble.

—

The air was chokingly dry as her eyes shot open, body jolting from the sudden impact struck against her back as she grunted in pain. Slowly recalibrating to an awakened state, she assessed her surroundings in hopes that she had finally woken up from this nightmare, but to no avail. 

“Good mooorning—or should I say good evening? You wouldn’t truly be able to tell the difference, mm?” she could hear the familiar, irritating voice tease her as the hooded figure it came from took careful steps in front of her within the dimly lit room. 

“L-let me...  _ rrgh! _ Let me  _ go _ already!” the woman shouted, pulling intensely against the chains that bound her as she stood helplessly upon the pedestal.

The mysterious individual bellowed with laughter as he snuck his claw underneath his robe to pull out a piece of parchment. “I have not come to inflict pain—at least not  _ this _ time, sister,” he muttered, holding the letter out to the prisoner as if she could grab it in the state she was suspended in. “O-oh! Ahhh, that’s right. You can’t take this, can you? Perhaps I will do you the favor of reading it aloud—consider it a gift!” he laughed, ripping off the wax seal and tossing it against the woman’s chest.

Upon clearing his raspy throat, the scaled fingers unfurled the letter as he began to read dramatically to his subject. “Scorpia—ah, she spelled your name right!—The Kingdom of Bright Moon requests your immediate presence for an emergency Queen’s Alliance meeting—is that what they’re calling it now?—in the following days. Hey, are you even listening?!” he raised his voice, crumpling the letter before the dazed, shackled Queen of the Fright Zone.

“Y-yes, my lord, I-I’m listening,” Scorpia pathetically spat out, raising her head against her better judgment, wincing at the pain she felt in her neck as she forced her eyes to stay open and fixated on her captor.

_ Ahem! _ “I will keep things clear and to the point. We have suffered three… three casualties—hah! Hahaha! Only  _ three?! _ If only you  _ knew _ , Queen Glimmer of Bright Moon!” he cheered with maniacal laughter.

Scorpia couldn’t hold her head up any longer as she began to weep to herself, clenching her teeth so as to not make any noise as she heard Glimmer’s voice in her head while he recited the letter she wrote to her. There was no word to describe the pain she had endured, knowing full well the mastermind’s intentions throughout the last two weeks. Hearing them come to fruition in short bursts like this was agonizing in this state of helplessness. During this wave of grief, she felt his cold grip against her chin as her head was launched up from beneath.

“Do  _ not _ think you can simply  _ ignore _ me while you are being spoken to, whelp!” he shouted, his jet black snout poking out from under his hood as her cheeks were clenched by his grasp. “You better get ready—tomorrow is a  _ big _ day for our colony, all thanks to you and that stupid rock of yours.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hehe, only comment I'll make is bear with me in regard to Entrapta's tech haha. hopefully it at least makes fictional sense!


	4. Machination III

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Discussion of their final plans continues as disagreements are settled, the team now able to move forward to confront this new conflict with confidence, while Scorpia continues to endure.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's content warnings:  
> — Torture/Mention  
> — Mild sexual behavior + sex mention

“They were here the _whole_ time?!” Catra exclaimed, furiously standing up from her seat as the chair was pushed backwards. The sudden outburst made Glimmer flinch as her partner yelled in her face, though she was not surprised at this reaction upon instant reflection. 

“Geez, Kitten, good to know you haven’t changed a bit, hun,” Double Trouble remarked with a chuckle, poking their head forward to see her fuming face past Glimmer.

Double Trouble arrived this morning after she sent them a letter as well, agreeing to meet in private outside of Bright Moon so as to not ignite any fires until everyone was on the same page. The last time Glimmer worked with them, they ended on good terms, and now that she was queen, money _truly_ was no object.

They discussed a tentative plan, but Glimmer made it clear that it was subject to change if the plan were to change its course, agreeing that the pair would find other suitable work to do for making them come out all this way on a hunch. The queen assumed that she would end up needing to pursue the Fright Zone in some form or fashion but knew that it would be unwise to leave Bright Moon queenless. Her father could act as King regent but there was some part of that that she couldn’t feel fully comfortable with.

“Catra—everyone—I know how out of left field this must look, but rest assured, I have a plan! I promise!” Glimmer proudly announced. “Besides, I know my way around slimy folks like this by now,” she continued as she tossed a glare of confidence to Catra, the feline’s face still flush with rage. 

_“Yeesh_ , you sure don’t mince your words, kiddo,” Double Trouble said in jest at the harsh comment of distrust directed to them.

The feline was _pissed_ that this was even being considered, let alone happening as she recalled the last time her and Double Trouble were face to face. She marched herself between Glimmer and the table to get quite personal with the shapeshifter, pushing her lover out of the way against her seat to get to them, promptly digging her claws into the neck of their outfit. 

“H-hey!” the queen blurted as she fell back against the back of her seat. “Catra, _stop!”_ Glimmer yelled, catching herself from falling on the arm of her chair.

Catra held her grip on them, yanking them down towards her barely an inch away from her face, staring daggers into their eyes before aggressively pushing them back. She didn’t bother being careful with her claws, slicing the fabric of their collar as they reeled back. The feline sighed heavily, a sinking feeling of regret washing over her upon losing her temper in front of everyone.

The queen was somewhat disappointed by Catra’s behavior, feeling a little embarrassed by her actions, but couldn’t find it in her heart to be mad knowing what her last encounter with Double Trouble entailed. She had every right to be upset, but this was just not her decision to make.

“Glimmer, I— hey, I didn’t mean to shout, I’m-” Catra admitted, beside herself as the whole table was staring toward the flustered feline, but was cut off by the queen.

“It’s fine—we’ll talk about it later,” she said quietly towards her. “Just sit down for now, love,” she added, reaching her hand out to Catra’s shoulder to put some space between her and Double Trouble, gesturing her back to her seat. 

The feline slunk into her seat with many of her friends sharing looks of discomfort toward the pair, making her feel quite small. Not only did she make the person she loved upset, she also embarrassed herself in front of her friends while _still_ being angry about Double Trouble’s involvement to begin with. _Nice going, Catra._

While she didn’t feel great about the exchange, Glimmer still had to keep a professional face as she laid out her plan. “Double Trouble will stand in as Queen Glimmer for the coming days while I am away. They have been given specific instructions on how to receive and behave to my citizens with my advisor Husain to assist where necessary,” she concluded, waving her hands above the table to focus on the Fright Zone’s topography.

“Diana, Catra, Bow, and myself will find our way through the Fright Zone to locate Scorpia and catch her up, finding as much out as we can,” she continued, now zooming out of the biome to the whole of Etheria. “Queens, I need you to work on fortifying your kingdoms. Remain vigilant and use the new channel to share any new discoveries.”

Frosta stood up from her seat. “No, I would like to come with you,” she suggested in earnest. Multiple voices slammed against each other to object but ended up sounding so garbled that nobody could make out a single thing being said. 

_“Hey!”_ Glimmer shouted, zipping everyone’s lips before speaking forwardly to Frosta. “Much like Bright Moon, the Kingdom of Snows should not be left leaderless, Frosta,” she shared in an attempt to change her mind.

The frostian queen shook her head firmly. “You need my help. The Fright Zone is not exempt from the cold,” she retaliated with the truth. Winter had _hit_ Etheria, more and more snow falling each day across the continent. There was no disputing her skills being of good use in a pinch. 

“She’s right, Sparkles,” Catra chimed in, reminiscing the sleet storms that would freeze the machinery, still expected to train on those horrid days. “The Kingdom of Snows is so disjointed and so unpopulated, there’s frankly nothing of value there—no offense, kid,” she stated to back it up.

“Huh? There’s _plenty_ of— _ahem!”_ Frosta began her rebuttal, but quickly decided there was no point. “She’s right. My kingdom is safe. My sorcerers will fortify with barriers of ice to prevent visitors while I’m away, we have enough resources for that long,” she shared with utmost sureness. 

Glimmer rubbed her chin to think for a spell, biting her lip as she considered it further. She assessed the room and took a look at everyone, now staring at her for a final verdict. “I suppose you’ve made a good case—what do you think?” she asked, looking to Bow and Diana back and forth. She already knew Catra was on the side of agreement.

Bow felt a bit more comfort in traveling with a larger number, certainly seeing the perspective of utility with her elemental powers. He nodded quite aggressively in response. 

Her Hand on the other hand remained unsure, but after enough time debating it internally, she shrugged. “It’s your choice, Your Grace. It cannot be denied that her powers are helpful.”

“Very well. Frosta, you will accompany us. I will send a letter to your court entailing the details,” said Glimmer, snapping her fingers to whip an inkpen and parchment from her quarters down before her, beginning to write out the plans. The ice queen did a small fist pump of excitement as she sat herself back down, relieved that she didn’t have to go back to doing nothing. 

As she quickly finished the note, Glimmer quickly recapped the discussion and objectives before finally dismissing everyone. With her final remarks said, she concluded with an invitation to dinner open to all to celebrate their togetherness, despite the unfortunate circumstances of its cause. General banter broke out as the seriousness of the conversation began to dwindle into more fun topics until the alliance slowly made their departures, Glimmer of course waiting until the end. By the time all had left, it was only Catra and Bow that remained and Glimmer could finally slouch in her seat. 

“Ugh… _fuuuck!”_ the Queen shouted as her head smacked the back of her chair. Bow was somewhat astonished at Glimmer’s sudden change in language given how often he’s seen her behave so formally in the last few months, but Catra was of course unmoved, still surrounded by the same fiery Glimmer any time she wasn’t wearing the crown. 

“Yeah… that was a long one,” Catra remarked, kicking her feet up on the holo-table and disrupting the image.

Bow reached his hand beneath the table to flick the switch, the image surface dissipating. “No _kitten_ Catra,” he said, grinning widely.

 _“Eugh,_ that was _awful!”_ Catra immediately responded, her palm colliding with her forehead as Glimmer bellowed with laughter.

“Hey, we still can’t get in touch with Adora, right?” Bow asked, not truly being able to enjoy the company of the best friends squad without her. She hadn’t come up _once_ during discussion, despite being _the_ She-Ra.

“I… guess not,” Glimmer answered, acknowledging her absence. Of course she hadn’t _forgotten_ about her, but she absolutely didn’t factor her into the equation with her having been gone for so long now. It was approximately two months ago that she charted a course in their solar system with Entrapta’s assistance to help revitalize neighboring planets. It was estimated that she would return in three month's time, but without being able to get in touch, it was hard to gauge when she would return now. “We’ll be okay without her, we’re stronger than we’ve ever been!” Glimmer optimistically stated.

While she was right, Bow still had a gut feeling that this was a lot worse than they thought and how wrong it felt for Adora not to at least _know_ what was happening. Bright Moon was just as much her home as it was his or Glimmer’s, surely she’d be horrified at the thought of such danger striking out of nowhere.

“I’ll keep trying. Once we get rid of the jamming signals, we’ll be able to reach her again,” Catra deduced, following up with a chuckle. “Knowing her, she’s already on her way back after day one of not hearing from us.” The other two giggled at the sentiment knowing full well that that was a possibility, knowing how little Adora thought for herself.

“I think that this journey is important for her. She’s never had so much time to herself and quite frankly _deserves_ such a break,” Glimmer said, reflecting on Adora’s restlessness during the war.

“Oh, I’m sure it’s _quite_ peaceful with Swift Wind on the ship with her,” Catra said in jest, rolling her eyes at the queen. The laughter amidst them continued as they chatted aimlessly, enjoying the peace before the oncoming storm. 

—

“Y-you can’t keep— _Rrgh!_ —d-doing this!” Scorpia shouted as her claws were bound in stones once again. This was the third time she was undergoing this horrifying procedure, being carted toward the sanctum containing her runestone as hooded figures ran cords around the tips of her pincers. Scorpia was ordinarily as strong as they come, but after days of being fed the bare minimum and constantly being woken during her rests, she had little energy to fight back as they got her into position again. While she was suspended from this… _device_ , they connected her claws against the surface of the black garnet, aiming her other arm in the opposite direction.

The area her Runestone was moved to was so much larger than its initial home on the surface of the Fright Zone, its ceiling spanning terrifyingly high as wires and pipes loomed above, fading to black. It was an otherwise unlit room, but whenever Scorpia came in contact with the stone, it radiated its blood red hue.

“Oh… oh I _can_ , though. And… _you’re not gonna believe it,”_ the stranger’s voice whispered, quickly escalating into a shout. “I’m going to! Again and again, in fact! You are a _wellspring_ of possibilities, my dear,” he concluded, patting the Fright Zone ruler hard against the back as he wandered off into the darkness. Scorpia could hear the cranking of tools as his henchmen stood ominously across from her. 

“Ready to fire!” the serpentine voice shared from deeper within the sanctum, echoing somewhat as the figures stepped forward to tighten the stone bindings that were affixed to her claws. Her captor returned from the darkness as he took his steps in front of Scorpia to get into position, beginning to chant a tongue she could not recognize. The sockets of his eyes flared with a searingly bright red as he contorted his fingers in front of him, a symbol fabricating in front of each hand. 

Scorpia tightened up, bracing for an impact she was all too familiar with now, but couldn’t refrain from shouting anyway. “No, no! _—Ungh!”_

The mysterious auras were thrust forward against the stones binding her, inscriptions on them being flooded with power as the black garnet brightened with untamed energy. Then, as if it were a real thunderstorm, it surged through Scorpia acting as a conduit to unleash it toward the darkness, a devastating bolt of red lightning crashing against a pile of mechanical rubble that only appeared in the light for a split second.

She was panting _heavily_ upon the sudden spike of energy that coursed through her body, trying desperately to stay conscious to witness what was about to unfold. Before she could even try to herself, the mysterious man’s claws gripped her chin to point her face toward the target she had struck. After a few seconds of anticipation, vibrant orbs of red lit up in the darkness as the clanking of metal began to shift against itself, a screech of life being birthed from the mass as its cogs began to spin. Pieces of it flared up with electrical residue as it lumbered into the light, a mechanical grumble eliciting fear in the scorpioni queen as its form became clearer. Large, tube-like appendages bound in stone, wire, and metal on all fours like a beast. The sight quickly grew exceedingly more horrifying as it began to unfurl unnaturally long wings with serrated edges that scraped against the ground.

“Yes! Come _alive_ , Machination III! Ohhh, ho ho ho!” the man cackled, still clutching Scorpia’s face as she turned it back to him. “You and I,” he began, creeping his face uncomfortably close to her as his voice trailed off into a whisper. “We’re going to create _wonderful_ things.”

—

Catra sought to get up early the following day, not spending much time the night before gathering her things. It had been a while since she had left Bright Moon for anything, much less for battle. The old reality she was used to felt so distant, having finally gotten accustomed to the peaceful nature of Bright Moon, with the kindest soul to care for her to boot. Part of her couldn’t believe that she actually had to sharpen her claws again, but it felt like this time she had something to fight for, wanting to be fully ready in the event of a crisis.

The feline’s eyes shot open upon feeling the warmth of the sun against her body, filtered through the veil of the bed, somewhat erratically jostling herself awake. Her head spun from side to side, thinking she overslept, Glimmer not with her in the bed. The veil was parted on the east-facing side of the bed, where she turned her head to see her love meditating in the sun, her staff suspended in the air a foot in front of her.

The competition in her was upset that Glimmer was already awake and fully dressed in her battle attire, but the smitten side of her couldn’t help but stare as she crawled over to the edge of the bed where the veil was split to get a better look. 

“I do see you,” Glimmer said, eliciting a small giggle as her eyes remained shut, her position unmoved. 

“And I see _you_ , dummy,” Catra responded, not bothering to get up just yet. In just a matter of hours, they could be in danger, so it was nice to forget all about the possibilities in this moment of beauty and peace she soaked in. 

Eventually, the queen’s staff floated down to her knees as it left its stasis and Glimmer’s eyes opened, flickering as they adjusted to the light. She teleported up to a standing position and turned to aim the staff towards Catra, smiling as she pushed it gently atop her head. The unsuspecting feline thought nothing of it until Glimmer clenched her staff, Catra suddenly warping forward a few feet to stand before her. She completely lost her balance and let out a squeak as Glimmer’s free arm swooped around to catch her, pulling her into an embrace full of laughs as the queen kissed her on the cheek. 

Catra stammered with discomfort at first but quickly was seduced by the contagious laughter of her lover, letting her weight rest against Glimmer as she reciprocated with a kiss to her forehead.

The queen pulled herself away from the half-naked feline, looking her up and down before sharing a snide comment. “You look ready for the Fright Zone to me!” she teased, crossing her arms.

“Sh-shut up! I just woke— _ugh_ , you’re annoying!” Catra bashfully responded, stomping her way over to the dresser to put her outfit on. Glimmer got it ready for her, knowing what she’d pick to take out to the field. It was the outfit she wore the last time they fought, complete with the headpiece, but Glimmer had some modifications done to it by one of her advisors who doubled as a seamstress. Atop its shoulders, there were ribbons of fine sandpaper, allowing her to sharpen her claws any time she needed. She did away with the awkward thigh outer thigh opening, fashioning it with more coverage from the elements. Finally, it had a holst affixed to its belt that unbuckled in a pinch to hold her whip from, with some teeny satchels added last minute to hold hers and Bow’s bolas’. It was fun to watch her wiggle into it and discover all of the new features one by one.

“You’re telling me that that one reserved court lady did all of this?!” Catra exclaimed, already making use of the shoulderpads to file her nails to a point. 

“Yeah! And _quickly_ , too. Very kind of her,” Glimmer answered, unable to resist her mind going other places as she eyed the slender feline.

“I’ll have to remember to thank her next I see her,” Catra said, catching wind of Glimmer’s gaze and intentionally adjusting the window to her tits with a cheeky grin, forcing a blush.

"Ugh, _I’m_ annoying?!” Glimmer exclaimed, tossing her staff toward the bed as she took steps forward to meet Catra’s body with her touch, sliding her delicate fingers up her sides to her breasts before whispering inches away from Catra’s lips. “What, last night wasn’t enough?”

The feline’s claw found its way to the back of Glimmer’s head as she clutched her hair and pulled her into a sensual kiss, their tongues swimming against each other for a long moment before gently pulling her back again. “It’s _never_ enough, Sparkles,” she teased, tracing her sharpened fingertips around Glimmer’s cheeks down to her jaw, grazing across it as she stepped to the side, walking towards her wardrobe to grab the last of her tools.

Glimmer inhaled sharply upon the sensation against her face, releasing the tension on her body as she recognized the importance of making a timely departure. She took steps in the opposite direction toward the towering windows that overlooked her city. She pressed her hand against its cool touch, a slight layer of frost melting against her warm fingers. It was, as usual, a beautiful sight, but she savored it much more than usual. It reminded her what she was fighting for.


	5. The Ice Queen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Beginning their trek to the Fright Zone, Glimmer faces internal conflicts of doubt as they embark on their mission. The party is stunned by Frosta's power.

The palace was the busiest Catra had ever seen, walking through the halls with her queen to make their way to the courtyard to meet with the others before departure. It was barely after the crack of dawn but the foot traffic consisted of several court officials and kingdom ambassadors making haste to prepare for the day ahead. There was no shortage of tasks to be carried out throughout the kingdoms of Etheria today and nerves were beginning to set in as the feline continued her stride, gripping Glimmer’s hand tighter as they came closer to the entrance to the courtyard. 

The queen, wisened to Catra’s mannerisms, spun spirals against the back of her hand with her thumb. “It’ll be alright, babe. Fun, even!” Glimmer said gently, arching her head up to smile at Catra with reassurance.

“Yeah, I know,” Catra responded, reciprocating with a smirk. “It’s just weird.”

“Agreed,” Glimmer responded with a sigh as they both set their sights on the courtyard before them upon reaching the archway leading outside. They let loose their hands to greet the their three traveling partners, chatting amongst themselves about plans and what they anticipate throughout their travels. The queen stood close to Bow to welcome herself, her hand gently resting against his shoulder to get his attention.

“Glimmer, you’re here!” he exclaimed with joy as he greeted his friends, turning to pull _both_ of them in for a hug. Glimmer was ready for it. Catra refrained at first but ended up giving in and giving a subtle rub on the shoulder as she was embraced. It was a warm feeling for the three of them to share. “Hey, Melog should be around here too!” Bow mentioned as he released the girls. 

“Awesome—knew I could count on you, arrow boy,” Catra said in earnest, patting him on the shoulder before briskly jogging around the courtyard to observe their regular hiding spots.

“We’re all set to go if you are!” he followed up, pulling down on his gloves. He had adorned his coat with an extra quiver down the forearm of his bow hand, for more arrows as a whole but also as a backup supply. He also had quite the backpack on, presumably full of traveling supplies as the crusade may take several days.

“Yup! Sorry we’re late! We were a little busy,” Glimmer said absentmindedly, somewhat awkwardly defending herself as she realized the potential implications. “S-scrambling to get our stuff together! Catra slept in,” she exclaimed.

 _“Did not!”_ Catra shouted from behind a hedge as she overheard Glimmer make excuses. She knew full well that they were dilly-dallying because they kept teasing each other, and there was no reason she could think of to not keep teasing her _now_.

“H-hey! Yes you did!” Glimmer retorted, both Diana and Bow slipping into a laughing fit as Frosta stood there confused at the otherwise uninteresting discussion.

“Well, we should move soon. I can handle the cold of the night, much more than all of you,” Frosta explained, wanting to make as much progress towards the Fright Zone before sundown.

“There you are, baby!” Catra excitedly said, murmurs of the Krytis beast purring against her touch as they began to rough and tumble within the garden as the others discussed how they’d progress. They eventually came to meet up with her to get a move on, Glimmer elaborating on their first teleport location before they began walking. She nodded in agreement as she stood up to grab onto Glimmer’s extended arm, the others following suit. _Fwsh!_

—

_Ring… ring… ring…_

_Ring… ring… ring…_

_Ring… ring… ring…_

“Ugh, _please_ turn that off already!” the steed exclaimed in annoyance.

“No! What if they pick up this time?” Adora countered, palms against Darla’s dashboard as the screen of static remained.

“Well, they didn’t pick up last time. Or the time before that… ooor the time before _that_ ,” Swift Wind elaborated, stretching his wings within the cabin as he admired the planet they were coming up on.

Adora sighed. She knew that continuing the call was fruitless, but she wanted so badly to hear from Glimmer and the others after a full week of no contact. They called her every day since she left months ago, so what stopped them? Entrapta was certain that their communicators would work from galaxies away, yet she hadn’t even left the quadrant as she made her way from planet to planet within Etheria’s solar system.

“Fiiine,” Adora defeatedly said, slapping the console to stop the call and waltzing back over to her seat of command. Of _course_ she was worried, but tried her best to attribute it to technical issues. It wasn’t often that she was, but maybe Entrapta got it wrong. 

She still had a few other planets on her docket to bring She-ra’s might to before she could confidently return. So far, she’d been able to ‘calibrate’ herself with the essence of the planets she’d reached, dismantling any remnants of Horde Prime’s machines as the lock on its lifeforce was released. She would then do a quick scan of any lifeforms that she could potentially rescue from the harm of the planet, trying to bring together as many interplanetary societies as She-Ra. Some of the planets were soulless, seemingly always like that even before Prime, but others had thriving civilizations. 

It was a big task and knowing it would take so long, not knowing if the others would be able to do anything tangible to the sort of things she was performing, so she only took swift wind after some deliberation. She was happy to do it, happy to have some time to herself in a way she never really felt before. When Glimmer told her that she was always putting others before herself, it resonated with her once she finally had some apt time to reflect. It was nice to have the time to think.

“Hey, I know you’re worried. I’m sure Queen Glimmer of Bright Moon has everything under control!” Swift Wind exclaimed trying to lighten the mood by striking a pose, eliciting at least _some_ what of a giggle out of Adora.

“Yeah… they’re fine! That girl’s capable of _so_ much more than everyone gives her credit for,” Adora remarked, tapping the side of her control panel to focus in on the planet below and beginning her descent.

—

_“Ugh,_ why did I think I was capable of teleporting _five_ of you?!” Glimmer shouted as she pulled on her hair, short of breath. She was nowhere near where she wanted the party to end up. She tried focusing on the edge of the Fright Zone, a feasible location for her to reach from Bright Moon having done it plenty of times before. However, with the added focus of bringing five others with her as opposed to one or two, all she could do was reach the entrance to the forest and she was _exhausted_ from it.

“Hey, babe, it’s fine! We can walk,” Catra tried to soothe her despite feeling a little disoriented after the third time she tried teleporting them. They made it there the first time no problem, but the second and third tries resulted in just flickering in place. 

Bow chimed in too as Glimmer continued to catch her breath. “Yeah! It’s what we were expecting to do—don’t worry about it!” he said, reaching his arm out to Glimmer’s shoulder, who reactively swatted at him as she stomped a couple steps away.

“No! I can do it!— _Nngh,”_ she grunted, forehead in her hand as she turned to squint at her runestone from across the prairie as the party stood at the forest’s entrance. “I just don’t _get_ it, I thought I could do it! I’m really sorry everyone,” she said, dialing back her rage into an feeling of guilt from letting her friends down. 

Melog sobbed softly as their hue shifted to a deeper blue as Catra made the necessary steps to close the difference, cupping Glimmer’s cheeks in her hands as she forced her to look up to her face. “You aren’t disappointing _anyone_ , babe,” she delivered softly as she gave her a peck on the head. 

Glimmer sighed deeply as she collected herself, simply nodding against her hands as they exchanged warm smiles. It never felt good to lose her composure in front of her subjects, but it especially felt bad in front of her friends. Despite everything, Catra’s way with words always felt so healing that she felt like she could completely forget about her overconfidence in that moment. And she did.

The feline took command of the stares they received from the others as Melog began to growl somewhat, turning her head to face the others as she released her grip from Glimmer. With a couple confident steps forward, she swung her claw in a circular motion as she gestured to everyone. “Forest isn’t going to move on our behalf!” she commanded somewhat snarkily, reminiscent of her time as a force captain.

Glimmer felt embarrassed as the others began to walk into the forest, trailing behind Catra. She gave it a few seconds, looking back to Bright Moon with a sense of insecurity instilled in her before turning to catch up. She took a few steps forward but stopped in her tracks before almost crashing into Bow who was looking down towards her with concern.

“Hey, it’s not good to dwell on things. What’s on your mind?” Bow got straight to the point with his concern after observing the queen’s behavior, stepping out of the way as the two began to walk beside each other, separated from the others.

She sighed, knowing that _as usual_ she wore her feelings like a painting on her face. “I’m just still shaken by everything, if I’m being honest,” she began, shaking her head as her voice began to tremble. “Those men were _killed,_ Bow!” she cried out, clenching her fists with a lavender hue surrounding them as they continued making footsteps in the blanket of snow beneath them.

He didn’t have words to respond with right away, knowing that his condolences had been repeated time and time again by this point. Nothing he could say could detract from how she felt, but he of course still wanted to comfort her, perhaps this time more constructively. “There’s nothing you can do except move forward. We have a _plan_ , and they will receive the justice they deserve,” he affirmed, turning his head to the somber queen.

Glimmer took a deep breath as she gently nodded her head, looking up from the path to the others several feet in front of them. “We do, and we will,” she uttered with confidence under breath as she shook her head to move the hair out of her face, a sudden rush of determination rushing over her. “Thanks, Bow.”

The beginning of their journey began, though mostly silent as bits and pieces of conversation or questions were tossed around. The marching order changed occasionally as they traded off the supply bag every hour or so, everyone happy to share the weight except for Frosta who frankly didn’t have the natural body strength to carry it for prolonged periods. She had grown considerably, almost matching Glimmer in height, but it was her demeanor that was indicative of her newfound maturity and _not_ her stamina.

By this point, she had been ruling her kingdom for upward of five years, the war of course playing a part in developing that sense of leadership amidst the chaos. There was something festering within her mind that the decision to come along feel so right, perhaps a certain craving to prove herself to her superior, Glimmer. While everyone respected her powerful magic, it felt as though that was all she was appreciated for, not truly being able to showcase her other qualities such as her leadership or decision-making. It was now that she was hoping to leave a better impression on those fronts.

It helped that she was right in her element. Etherian winters did not nearly last as long as the other seasons, but every now and then the cold would hit pretty hard and this winter was perhaps one of the colder ones from the last decade. Snow had been falling consistently for about a week now, many of the trees in the Whispering Woods glistening as the sun beamed down against the mounds of snow, trickling in through the branches above. Simply put, it was gorgeous in all senses of the word. The smell of fresh snow combined with the delicate breeze that carried the flakes through the air was a sublime feeling that felt so special to experience, given how little it snowed year-round in the more temperate regions.

As they were reaching the center of the forest, approximately, Catra turned heel to suggest a rest. It was somewhat selfish, her feet feeling tired and cold, but the others shared the sentiment. They walked a little further until they found a clearing and Bow began to unpack some supplies to start a small fire for them to warm up around. Trying not to waste time, Glimmer helped him by sifting through the bag to bring out some of the rations they brought along, doling them out as everyone took their seats on stools fabricated from the snow by Frosta.

“We should be able to reach the edge of the forest by nightfall,” Diana remarked, munching with haste on the food as everyone else filled their faces. For her, she was accustomed to riding horse-back, welcoming this change of pace to admire the forest she’d grown so desensitized to, if nothing else. 

“Cool, we can set up camp for the night when we reach the perimeter, then we should be able to get to the Fright Zone the following day,” Bow added, rubbing his hands together between bites as he huddled the closest to the flames he had set.

Glimmer was quiet, not having said much since they started walking in the morning. The marching order shifted throughout the day but she remained near the back. Partially so that she could see everyone in case of an emergency, but also so that she could process her failure earlier that day. She was so confident that she could teleport _everyone,_ given how much she’d been improving since Horde Prime’s defeat, so it was really frustrating to not be able to. What if something happens and they all need to leave immediately? Who gets left behind? It was annoying to think about, but she didn’t really want to burden anyone with her own self doubt.

“Hey, Sparkles, how are you holding up?” her partner asked from across the flames. In contrast to Glimmer, Catra was at the front of the formation for the majority of the moment, perhaps having the keenest senses of them all to detect anything weird in a pinch. Which of course meant that the two barely had any time to speak throughout the day. Naturally, she’d feel some extra concern knowing how otherwise bubbly the queen was even in times like this.

“Fine, more or less. Still thinking about this morning,” she admitted, not wanting to hide it. These were all folks she trusted after all.

“You shouldn’t worry about it,” Frosta piped up, almost sounding angry at Glimmer. “You should think more about what lies ahead instead of sulking,” she concluded. It felt a little out of character, but she was right and the queen knew it.

“I know,” Glimmer answered. “Sorry.”

 _Huh? Since when does Glimmer just submit like that?_ Catra thought, feeling agitated by Frosta’s attitude towards their ruler. “Can it, kid. She can be upset if she wants to be,” she blurted out at the frostian. 

“Oh, so _she_ can be upset? But if _I’m_ upset at something trivial, it’s childish?” the snow queen retaliated, raising her voice as she glared at the feline. There were so many cases Frosta observed where her friends were exempt from their feelings, but when it came to her, she was reprimanded for not being more mature. How did that make any sense?

Catra opened her mouth to fight back, but recognized it would probably just stress Glimmer out more and instead just took a massive bite of the jerky she had in her hands to shut herself up.

Bow sighed, wanting to sever any lines of tension that may linger into the night. “We shouldn’t argue about things like that, at _least_ not until we’re back in Bright Moon. Okay?” he asked to both Frosta and Catra.

“It’s fine, she’s right,” Glimmer said, tossing the paper wrapping of her food into the fire. “I shouldn’t be focused on that. Thanks Frosta,” she continued with a slight smile raised in her cheek. It _wasn’t_ a time to sulk and for a moment she was upset with herself that she let those feelings stew for so long. Now was the time to be fearless. To _lead_. She stood up and put her hands against her hips.

“We will get to the bottom of this. I couldn’t have asked for a better team to do it with,” she exclaimed to try and get everybody’s spirits up. Smiles of assurance broke out across the fire as everybody finished off their meals, quick to want to get back on the road. While there was still a sense of dread at the looming unknown, they could hang onto this sense of togetherness to carry them through it.

The rest of the afternoon was rather uneventful as they trekked through the snow-covered forest, though much closer in proximity this time as casual banter passed the time. It felt like it didn’t take nearly as long to make it to their next checkpoint, quick to make camp at the edge of the forest as they overlooked the crag-ridden plain leading up to the mountainous Fright Zone. With little else but stories and food to entertain the crew as night fell, the party agreed on a watch schedule before finally getting some rest in anticipation for the next day. The night passed without consequence, and they carried on at the crack of dawn.

Diana felt a stabbing anxiety as they neared the site of the caravans, sharing that they were close to the incident. The others prodded for small snippets of the event to jog their memories and the warrior hesitantly shared her grievances, thoughts of the mechanical beast’s might storming her mind with fear. She knew she had to be brave, to be ready for it, but the residual feelings of duress remained no matter what she thought about to cope. 

The queen finally laid eyes on the scene as they turned a corner, soaking in the terror of the wreckage laid before her, unable to form any words as she mourned. Both Catra and Bow came up beside her to comfort her gently upon the shoulders. The strength to go on laid its roots in that unity, allowing Glimmer to snap back to reality and assess the environment to try and get an understanding of how this foe functioned. Holes in the ground and the crags jutting out from below, spanning a full arm’s length across. This thing was _massive_ and Diana wasn’t exaggerating, it seemed. There was a blanket of snow covering the scene now, obscuring some of its other remnants. Shattered stones, dark markings from the friction it left in its wake and even some of the dried up blood. Perhaps it was for the best that Glimmer didn’t see _all_ of it.

It remained quiet during their brief investigation, deciding to ultimately carry on towards the Fright Zone. The group stayed very close to one another from now on, knowing that they were now within the perimeter of danger. Glimmer took it upon herself to connect with the other queens to inform them of their progress, following the instructions Entrapta had set in order to get in touch. _Click!_

“Hello—Glimmer here, we’re coming up on the Fright Zone. To keep this short, we saw the scene Diana shared,” she began to explain once some of the others had tuned into her call. It was only Mermista and Perfuma, but she didn’t want to wait for the others to trickle in and answer, trusting that they would just share with the others if needed.

 _“And?”_ the sea queen Mermista chimed back. _“Was it as she said it was?”_

“Regrettably, yes. It was horrifying,” she trailed off, taking a deep breath before continuing. 

_“Oh… I’m so sorry, Glimmer,”_ Perfuma piped up to say.

“It’s fine and _we’re_ fine. Thanks for the concern, Perf—”

_Screeeeeech!_

The party stopped in their tracks, silence flooding the call as their heads began to spin erratically trying to locate the origin of the ear-scraping sound. It felt as though it came from behind them, Glimmer thought as she turned her, but only to be met with the cloudiness of snowfall in the distance. 

_“What was that?”_ Mermista asked sharply with concern, but didn’t get an answer. 

_“Glimmer?!”_ Perfuma shouted to fill the void of speech.

_Screeeeeech!_

The sound was so much louder this time and _definitely_ nearing behind them. Everyone turned their bodies, writhing in anticipation as they began to brace themselves for whatever might unfold. Diana drew her lance and took a wide stance ahead of the others as they huddled around the queen.

“If you don’t hear from us soon, come running,” Glimmer commanded before ending the call abruptly, snapping to warp the device into the bag Bow had let go of. She reached behind to grasp her staff, gracefully twirling it into a stance of her own as she channeled the magic of her runestone, funneling it into the apex of her arcane focus to prepare for whatever might greet them. 

Each of them had readied themselves, but Catra remained just a foot ahead of Glimmer, not daring to let anything touch her if she had any say in it. They hadn’t ever fought beside each other after establishing their relationship and suddenly the feline had a determination to win that she had never felt in the same magnitude as she did now.

Finally, the source of the noise finally reared its ugly head and everyone’s confidence began to wither as a winged shadow began to form from within the low-hanging clouds above. There were dots and streaks of red light that were all too familiar to Diana as she could feel her body tense up. Letting out another gnashing screech, the mechanical dragon swooped down, slamming its metallic limbs against a rock formation barely a hundred feet away. 

“Wh-what.. _is_ that?!” Bow exclaimed, clenching his bow and nocking a net arrow. 

The air surrounding everyone began to chill as Frosta took several steps out ahead of everyone, carrying her open hands beside her as she began drawing flakes up from the ground, a vortex in each of her palms sucking in snow at an exponential rate as pieces of ice began to form around her limbs. 

_“Frosta!”_ Catra shouted, shivering at the sudden whirlwind she had been subject to, darting her gaze back at the machine that menacingly glared down at them from afar. It began to scale slowly down the cliffside, carefully treading above the spikes of rock as the snow queen continued down her path. The appendages of ice began to branch out drastically as geometric pieces of ice formed, connecting to one another with a vibrant blue hue surrounding them as her height grew taller amidst the flurry of snows that circled around her.

The others could only watch, their jaws slack with awe as they witnessed Frosta’s might, shaping the ice to mimic that of the draconic beast. Then, in a moment of serenity as the storm laid still in the air, Frosta had let out a visceral screech of her own, completely enveloped in ice as the eyes beamed an iridescent sapphire hue.

Catra and Glimmer exchanged a brief look of wonder as the feline spoke. “Thank goodness she’s on our side.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry, felt a little stuck on this chapter for a little bit! still might go back and make some revisions, not super thrilled with it haha, but I have a pretty good handle on what comes next. so hopefully not as big of a delay for the next ch. :)


	6. Dragons

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frosta faces off against Machination III while Glimmer struggles to lead. Bow and Diana discover a twisted truth.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter's warnings:  
> \- Serious injury/blood

The atmosphere was dense with tension, and bitingly cold. What Glimmer was watching unfold before her seemed so impossible to believe—not just one, but _two_ gargantuan dragon-like beasts, one of which was her friend, no less! It was all happening so quickly, she couldn’t even process what was happening, what to do, or that she was even being spoken to amidst the noise of the chilling winds Frosta had unleashed.

 _“What do we do?!”_ Catra shouted, bracing herself as shivers ran through her body. It felt like there was nothing they _could_ do. Whatever that _thing_ was, it was massive. There was no way any of the other four could do anything to it without getting in the way of Frosta’s fury. 

_“We need to help her!”_ the queen responded, slapped back to reality. _“Grab Melog!”_ she shouted as he extended her hand to Catra, who firmly clutched onto it with haste, her other claw reaching for Melog. _Fwsh!_ The two found themselves atop one of the crags somewhat disjointed from the path, overlooking the oncoming terror. 

“Wait here and assess the situation while I get the others to safety!” Glimmer cried out before losing her grip on Catra and vanishing in a shimmer of light. They couldn’t possibly help Frosta in close combat, but they _could_ help from afar, Glimmer concluded.

“Glimmer, wait!” Catra shouted, throwing her hands forward as the residue of the magic in the air made the hair on her arms stand tall. On one hand, she was flattered by Glimmer’s overprotectiveness to get her out of the fight, but on every other limb, Catra was pissed. _She_ was the one supposed to be protecting _her_ , but instead she had to bite down on worry and anxiety the second Glimmer had left, completely out of her control. _What if she doesn’t come back?!_ Catra’s heart began to race, her mind immediately jumping to the worst case scenario. _Damn it, Sparkles!_

Not wasting any time, the queen reappeared between her best friend and her Hand, grabbing them both and warping them away, but this time to the opposite side of the path. She got a brief look at the oncoming threat charging towards Frosta as the ice queen began to make her own approach to combat it. Upon reentry to the plane, both Bow and Diana panickedly spoke at the same time, Glimmer interrupting them both with her instructions. “Diana, study what you can—Bow, spot me with a bubble arrow when you see me down there,” she commanded looking firmly at her subjects with each careful word before releasing her grip. _Fwsh!_

The rampage of the mechanical beast was unrelenting as the two titans’ paths began to converge. Frosta had layered dozens of cascading sheets of ice around her, suspended by her magic in its core as the ice dragon began to unleash its might, delivering a wave of white clouds from its jaws. It swept the rocks below with a thick layer of ice before it finally collided with her foe, eliciting a shriek as it began to stumble against the cliff edges, slowing in its tracks in hopes that it would stop it in its place.

But it didn’t.

Flares of red energy lit up on various spots of its appendages, its eyes glaring through the layer of frost that coated its surface. Crackling sounds penetrated the atmosphere as it began to ready a weapon of its own, flares of a grim red lightning bouncing between its teeth as its frozen jaws began to unhinge, shattering the frost crystals that held it shut.

 _Fwsh!_ Appearing suddenly atop a spike of the land that laid between the two dragons, Glimmer appeared with her staff at the ready. Her free hand shot up and swiftly drew out an elaborate sign, fabricating a sigil before her as she muttered a few First Ones’ words to herself. With one twirl of the staff, she swung it forward, shoving the suspended sign towards the mech beast. 

“No, _no!”_ Catra helplessly shouted, Melog’s hue shifting to an empty grey as she watched her queen throw herself between the clashing monsters. That void of colour quickly shifted into a lush, sunlit forest green as Catra turned to gesture to her bestial friend before leaping off the cliffside down below to a platform in the rocks. She hopped from one opening to another, desperate to get herself over there. _No. No, I CAN’T lose you,_ Catra thought as her adrenaline continued to propel her forward, weaving between the crevices of the rocks. 

Glimmer’s spell had been thrust towards the dark dragon, but before she could stay around stick around to watch its wickedness unfold, she vanished again to safety, arriving at the platform she left Catra on. But she wasn’t there. _Catra?!_ Her heart dropped with worry, eyes scattered trying to find wherever she could have been. Her sights were torn away as her spell went off, a burst of radiant purple energy pulsating from the mecha’s chest, piercing the sound barrier with a harsh, static buzzing noise. The beast was struck, propelling it up and backward as its wings scrambled to take flight so as to not collapse against the field of rocks. It let out an intense shriek as parts began to crash down to the ground beneath it before it lifted itself into the air.

Frosta capitalized on this, steeling herself within the cocoon of wind that surrounded her to brace for impact before unleashing another breath attack in the opening she was given. It was an opportunity to push her position too. From within her chamber of stasis, she surveyed the ground to find better footing to raise her creation from, carefully weaving the giant icy appendages around stony pillars to give herself more height in the fight. 

The pulse of energy blasted through the air, pushing the wind along with it towards Bow and Diana. It pushed them off their balance for a brief moment, but they were quick to recalibrate and continue following their orders. Bow had a new arrow he developed, one that released a bubble of energy impervious to physical attack around wherever it was shot. It had a soft end that triggered upon impact. _One bruise is always going to be worth the rescue,_ was his rationale for its conception. When Glimmer was no longer in view, he quickly swapped to an offensive arrow, turning to Diana now that he didn’t need to maintain such an intense focus. “Anything?!”

“It’s built the same way as the snake, it seems. Glimmer struck it deep in the chest, but it’s moving as if nothing happened,” Diana began to explain, unable to do much except watch and learn what she could about their enemy. 

“What’s powering it?!” Bow exclaimed, raising his aim to the sky as it took to the clouds. He _was_ a tech guy, but this was unlike anything he had ever seen, even from the horde. Small, basic robotics was one thing, but this was so much more elaborate than Hordak could have ever accomplished. In a way, he was relieved that he could put a point on the board for Hordak for not betraying them yet. 

“It’s… I don’t know,” Diana answered, gripping her lance tight as she continued to wrack her brain. It wasn’t just mechanical, the more she looked at it. It was a strange blend of those pieces combined with tons of stone and metal intertwined. Squinting, she could make out that some of the pieces didn’t even connect. “Could it be magic?” she asked, despite being so uninformed about the arcane arts. 

Suddenly, the pieces began to fit in Bow’s head. _The Black Garnet._ No wonder its fiery light felt so familiar. He suddenly darted his eyes around the battlefield, trying to locate Glimmer, but to no avail. Frosta’s dragon form stood between both platforms Glimmer had rushed her friends to, obscuring vision to the other side. 

However, even if he could, Glimmer couldn’t be seen. She was teleporting wildly from opening to opening between the cliffs, trying to find her lover. ‘ _Where?!’_ was the only word she could think to herself, blinking in and out of Etheria desperate to find Catra, until finally—

 _“Glimmer!_ ” the familiar voice of her partner shouted, Glimmer quickly turning her head to meet the sight of Catra running towards her. Without even thinking, the queen’s arms opened up as Catra swiftly embraced her—quite tightly. “Y-you’re so _stupid!”_ the feline muffledly said with a chink in her voice, sniffling as she pulled away, shaking her head. But she was relieved.

The queen was quick to pull Catra’s face to hers, pushing a tender, firm kiss to her lips before pulling just an inch away, almost beginning to cry herself. “I’m so happy you’re safe,” she whispered aggressively before kissing her again, to which Catra returned in full for a couple moments before _she_ pulled away.

“Wherever you go, _I_ go,” Catra sternly said, receiving a quick nod from her partner before their ears were pierced by a shriek from above, both wincing in that moment. “Come on!” _Fwsh!_

The three of them appeared steps behind Bow and Diana, both of whom reared their heads to make sure everyone was safe. Diana turned her gaze back to the fray, but Bow rushed over to his friends to share their hypothesis. “Thank goodness you’re all okay—Diana and I think we know what’s going on,” he shared, quick to turn his head back to the beast as it unleashed another cry from a frost breath colliding with it. 

“Are you thinking the same thing I thought?” Catra wondered, reaching her arm down to stroke Melog’s neck. 

“Scorpia?” Bow asked in response, having made the connection between the beast’s energy and the black garnet’s, to which Catra regretfully nodded.

“Knew it.”

“Wait, what? What do you mean, guys?” Glimmer asked, puzzled as her gaze turned from the fight to the Fright Zone in the distance.

“It’s the black garnet,” Bow started. “Whether it’s Scorpia’s doing or not, there’s no way that it’s a coincidence!”

As if on cue, the mechanical monster now with some distance between itself and Frosta began to emanate an intense glow from the runestones on its body, opening its maw to reveal the zipping of red lightning. It steadied itself in the air as it aimed its head towards Frosta before it unleashed a devastating bolt of bright light upon the ice dragon’s body, shattering the upper body by the wing. The storm spiraling around Frosta withered quickly as giant pieces of ice began to crumble within the crevice. For a second, the world stopped as Glimmer’s eyes went wide with terror. 

Before anyone had the chance to shout Frosta’s name, the queen had vanished as the party witnessed a lavender shimmer within the avalanche blink in and out. Each of them were clenched with panic, but in a matter of moments, Glimmer reappeared behind them with the snow queen clutched tight in her arms as she fell hard against her back upon her reentry. 

Each of them wanted to rush over to help, both Catra and Diana rushing over to kneel and assist where needed. Frosta released a mortifying howl of pain as Glimmer released her grip on her, Diana taking the small frostian into her arms as Catra pulled Glimmer up to a sitting position. The feline couldn’t help but gasp as she observed a large red stain imprinted on her leotard, understanding the severity of the situation immediately. 

“We have to go! We can’t fight this thing!” Catra shouted amidst the screaming from Frosta and the shrieking of the beast as she turned to see it swooping down towards them. 

“Bow!” Glimmer shouted, met with readiness from the archer who whipped his arm back to release the arrow he had drawn towards the beast in the sky in order to reach for the next one as soon as possible. The arrow broke apart in the air, dispelling a net upon its contact to the dragon, slowing it enough for him to pull the bubble arrow out of his quiver. Without waiting, he shot the bubble arrow down against the rubble between him and the others, a familiar blue net suddenly surrounding them.

“Glimmer, get us out of here!” Bow shouted, beginning to sling his bow across his back, reaching both arms out. He grabbed Diana’s arm to connect himself to her and Frosta, extending his other towards the queen.

“I-I can’t!” Glimmer cried, shaking her head rapidly as she peered past Bow’s shoulder to watch the beast untangle itself from the white net laid upon it.

“Yes you can! _”_ Catra shouted. “You _have_ to try!” she concluded, grabbing onto Melog and holding her hand out next to Bow’s. 

Glimmer took in a sharp, deep breath and reached her hands out to clutch theirs tight before letting out a scream. _Fwsh!_ The net dissipated, and the horror in the sky crashed against the rocks they vanished from, its metal claws tearing at the ground as it let out one last, drawn out shriek.

—

Thoughts were hazy, drifting in and out of consciousness as fleeting imagery of Catra and Bright Moon passed her by, blending together as if it were a dream. Visceral thoughts of the machine’s sounds continued to ring whenever she felt herself slip, jolting herself awake. Monster, Catra, Bright Moon, repeat, repeat, repeat, and then, nothing.

…

…

_“Glimmer!”_

_Huh?_

_“Wake up, Glimmer! Please!”_

_Catra? No. Diana. Diana?!_

The queen shot up, her head spinning around to assess her surroundings, but it was not long until she shut her eyes tight, groaning as her hands flung up to grab the sides of her head. 

“Glimmer! Relax—you need to rest,” Diana said, returning to her stoic voice. Her hands were easing Glimmer back down by the shoulders. The queen grunted, but nestled her shoulders back against the cushions as she slowly let her eyes open up again. She was in the comfort of her own bed, taking deep breaths to try and diffuse the pain she felt in her head. It was a nauseating feeling of exhaustion, feeling completely worn out from head to toe. Though it was not long until concern joined in on those feelings.

“Diana? Where is everyone? Where’s Catra?! And Fro—”

“Shh, my queen. Rest. Everyone is safe,” Diana assured, moving her hand up to push some stray hair out of Glimmer’s face. “All thanks to you,” she added with a smile.

The queen continued to breath heavily as she laid there, trying to make sense of everything. The last thing she remembered was… Catra, carrying her. Then _screeeeech_ the Bright Moon gate opening. And then _screeeeech—_

She winced, unable to shake the thoughts of the beast laying its devastation down against Frosta. The thought, every sound, every second of what she watched, playing over again in her mind. “Frosta,” Glimmer began, a rush of emotions overwhelming her as the guilt of letting her get hurt caused her to tear up. “I need to see her,” Glimmer commanded, feeling her grip on reality return despite the lack of energy.

“Your Grace, you can’t,” Diana said, holding her hand out to stop her, but to avail. _Fwsh!_

 _“Nngh!”_ she grunted, materializing again just a few feet away from her bed. As she tried to catch her breath, she held her hands up, watching them tremble as she could feel her knees give out, collapsing to the floor with another grunt as she caught herself on her hands and elbows. Diana was quick to rush over, easing her grip around Glimmer’s shoulders to help lift her up, but in those moments, the door opened. It was Catra.

 _“Glimmer!”_ the feline shouted, dropping a handful of papers as she swiftly knelt down to meet her partner to help her up. With Diana’s help, Glimmer was lifted up and brought back to the comfort of their bed. “Dummy,” Catra cooed as she slowly let her lover’s head down against the pillow. “Thanks, D. Please leave us,” Catra gently said with utmost politeness. The hand obliged with a subtle bow to Catra before making her exit. As the door shut behind her, Catra turned her head back to Glimmer as she continued to hover over the lying queen. Her hands wandered gently atop Glimmer’s body, back and forth as the silence hung over them.

“Catra,” Glimmer finally said after a short resting of her eyes, opening them again to be greeted by a tender, tear-ridden smile.

“What?” the feline responded, her fingers grazing over Glimmer’s and resting atop her hand.

“Frosta, is she…?” she asked hesitantly, fearing the worst. 

Catra giggled under breath, widening her grin. “She’s fine. Your dad got your aunt to come as fast as she could to help heal her,” she explained, running her thumb in circles over the back of Glimmer’s hand. She always did that to _her_ whenever she was anxious. The queen let out a sigh of relief as her eyes shut once more. 

“I wish Adora were here,” Glimmer lamented after a pause. If She-Ra was here, she could heal Frosta no problem. She probably could’ve handled that… _thing_ , too. It was difficult for Glimmer to come to terms with how powerless she suddenly felt as she thought about her friend.

“Me, too,” Catra admitted with a slow nod to follow. There was another delay between words as they busied their minds with thoughts of what ifs and if onlys. 

“I have… so many questions,” Glimmer said, shaking her head gently against the pillow. 

“Ask them tomorrow, babe, you _need_ to sleep,” Catra ordered, trailing her fingers away from Glimmer as she swung her legs off the bed and leapt off. “I’ll catch you up in the morning—I’ve got it under control,” she assured her, before turning and walking back toward the door, kneeling down to pick up whatever documents she fumbled with earlier.

“Catra!” Glimmer feebly yelled out from across the room. Catra’s ears piped up as she twisted her head back. “I love you so much.”

The feline smiled, then slowly nodded. “I know, Sparkles,” she responded, puckering her lips to elicit a kissing sound before she disappeared into the hallway, gently closing the door behind her.

Glimmer smiled as she let her dizzy head fall back against the pillow. The exhaustion was back, and it was only a matter of seconds until she was out again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I would love feedback on this chapter! I write a lot of D&D stuff, so it's not out of my comfort zone to write elaborate fight scenes, but... I hope this was cohesive enough! It felt challenging to write with so many characters to keep track of. Thanks for reading and commenting. :)


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